5 Things First: The Top Czech News Headlines

If your day doesn’t start until you’re up to speed on the latest headlines, then let us introduce you to our new morning fix. 

• The Civic Democrats (ODS, ECR) called on the outgoing Czech government to send police officers to Poland and help its neighbour with the current migration crisis at the Polish-Belarus borders.

• Eight hospitals in South Moravia, including both big teaching hospitals in Brno, have asked for military assistance in dealing with the current autumn coronavirus wave, the region’s governor Jan Grolich said.

• Civic Democrat chairman Petr Fiala, leader of the election-winning Together coalition and candidate for PM, will meet President Milos Zeman at the Central Military Hospital in Prague on Wednesday, ODS spokesman Vaclav Smolka told CTK. Zeman was moved to a long-term care bed at the UVN today mainly in order to be able to receive visits.

• One of the first bills to be debated by the newly established Chamber of Deputies should be a draft legislation which would allow Czechs living abroad to cast their vote by post. Under the present legislation, Czechs living abroad can only cast their ballot at embassies which is expensive and time consuming for those who have to travel long distances.
• Czech scientists have devised a method that makes them the first in the world to observe the asymmetric distribution of electrons on single atoms of halogen elements. They have confirmed a phenomenon called “sigma-hole” that was theoretically predicted more than thirty years ago but could not be observed.