Czech news in brief for May 22: Friday's top morning headlines

Good morning, this is Elizabeth with your Morning Mix. We start Friday with some tragic news, a student has died in the Czech city of Pardubice following a stabbing at a school there. The school will remain closed. We also begin the news day with a message of hope. Appearing at the opening yesterday of the Meet Brno and the Sudeten German Association’s congress, Nick Winton, son of Sir Nicholas Winton, the rescuer of Jewish children from the Nazi threat, said "forgiveness is a gift."

A female student was stabbed to death Thursday afternoon outside the Secondary Technical School of Chemistry in Pardubice, allegedly by a fellow student following a relationship breakup. Police have detained the suspect. The school will remain closed until Monday, with end-of-year exams postponed.

Pardubice again: In 2022, a former student left an explosive device near the same building before killing a stranger with an axe in nearby Vysoké Mýto.

Important to know: Prosecutor General Bradáčová has recently flagged a significant rise in serious crimes committed by minors as alarming. In related news, this week Prague opened the country's first acute psychiatric outpatient clinic for children and adolescents, citing a severe shortage of child psychiatrists.

Moldovan President Maia Sandu told journalists at the Globsec security forum in Prague that European states continue to underestimate Russia's capacity for hybrid interference (disinformation, cyberattacks, illegal party financin) warning that AI is making these tactics significantly harder to detect. Moldova, she said, has lived it: Russian interference in its recent elections and referendum was "brutal."

The way forward: Permanent monitoring, strong anti-money laundering institutions, and a whole-of-government response. Moldova aims for EU accession by 2030. Globesec runs through Saturday.

Two of the children saved by Nicholas Winton joined Sudeten German representatives Thursday at Brno's main train station where Jewish transports departed during the war to commemorate Holocaust victims. The event opened both the Meeting Brno festival and the first-ever Sudeten German congress held on Czech soil. Winton's son Nick urged atttendees adn protesters against stoking hatred. "Forgiveness is not a gift for those who have behaved badly. It is a gift for ourselves," he said.

The politics: The Czech Chamber of Deputies voted last week to call on organizers to cancel the congress. President Pavel granted the festival his patronage anyway. A Median poll found 57 percent of Czechs oppose the congress being held here, though among under-24s, 68 percent support it.

German MPs voted unanimously Thursday to approve a high-speed rail line between Dresden and Prague, including the 30-kilometer Ore Mountains Tunnel. Construction begins 2032, completion 2044. Prague-Dresden drops from two and a half hours to one; Prague-Berlin from four to two and a half. Cost: EUR 5.6 to 8 billion.

Next step: EU funding announcement expected this summer, after which Berlin and Prague can sign the intergovernmental agreement.

Prague Airport expects 11.9 million passengers this summer, up 3.6 percent on last year, and is warning travelers to leave extra time. Road construction at the Aviatická x Lipská interchange near the airport will cause traffic disruptions all season; the airport recommends public transport. Terminal 1 and Terminal 2 have different security rules; in T2, new X-ray machines mean you no longer need to remove liquids or electronics from hand luggage; in T1, the old rules still apply.

Worth knowing before you fly: E-documents can't be used as ID at passport control. Power banks and laptops must go in hand luggage. UK-bound travelers need an ETA.