Czech capital marks anniversary of legendary Prague rabbi Yehudav Loew with exhibition

September 17th, 2009 Obama phones Czech premier on missile defensePRAGUE — The Czech government says President Barack Obama has phoned the country's prime minister to discuss a controversial U.S. missile defense plan.

September 10th, 2009 PRAGUE - China protested Thursday against a Prague visit by Tibet's exiled spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, and Uighur human rights activist Rebiya Kadeer. They arrived in the Czech capital to attend a conference on human rights and democracy in Asia.

August 18th, 2009 PRAGUE - Russia has expelled two Czech Republic diplomats Tuesday, following a move by Prague to dismiss two Russian diplomats over suspicion of spying. The two countries have been at loggerheads over Czech accusations of Russian spying - mentioned in reports by the Czech BIS secret service - connected to US plans to place parts of a missile defence system in the Czech Republic.

June 30th, 2009 Czech Jewish cemetery desecratedPRAGUE — A Jewish cemetery has been desecrated in the eastern part of the Czech Republic, members of the community there said Tuesday. Jaroslav Klenovsky of the Jewish community in nearby Brno said 63 tombstones were overturned at the cemetery in Uhersky Ostroh, some 280 kilometers (175 miles) southeast of Prague.

June 28th, 2009 Rains, flooding hit parts of Czech RepublicPRAGUE, — Heavy rains are flooding southern parts of the Czech Republic, with mudslides damaging houses and roads in the region. Rivers have been swelling in rural areas some 60 miles (100 kilometers) south of Prague, the capital, Sunday but no casualties had been reported.

June 16th, 2009 Prague out of race to host 2020 Summer OlympicsPRAGUE — Prague will not enter the race to host the 2020 Summer Olympics as planned due to the global economic crisis. The city council of the Czech capital voted 11-0 Tuesday to cancel preparations for the bid, said Marketa Reedova, deputy mayor and council member.

May 29th, 2009 Slovakia to build new nuclear power plantPRAGUE — Two state-run companies from the Czech Republic and Slovakia signed a deal Friday to create a joint company that will build a new nuclear power station in Slovakia. The Czech Republic's main power utility CEZ AS and Slovak energy company JAVYS AS will build the power station near the existing Soviet-era nuclear plant in Jaslovske Bohunice in western Slovakia.

May 13th, 2009 Ex-KKK head Duke in Austria after Czech expulsionVIENNA — Former Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke has come to Austria after being ordered to leave the Czech Republic. Duke's Klan past and suspicions that he questioned the existence of the Holocaust caused Czech authorities to cancel his lectures in Prague and Brno.

May 12th, 2009 Radio Free Europe opens new headquarters in PraguePRAGUE — U.S.-funded Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty has opened its new headquarters in the Czech capital. The five-story facility for the broadcaster's studios and some 500 employees is several miles (kilometers) from its previous site in downtown Prague.

May 12th, 2009 Straka selected new Czech Republic soccer coachPRAGUE — Frantisek Straka was selected as the Czech Republic's new soccer coach on Tuesday, replacing Petr Rada, who was fired last month because of poor results in World Cup qualifying. The Czech soccer federation's decision to appoint the 50-year-old Straka was a surprise after its committee had recommended rehiring Dusan Uhrin, who led the team to the final of the 1996 European Championship.

May 9th, 2009 Czech central bank cuts interest rates to 1.5 pctPRAGUE — The Czech Republic's central bank has cut its key interest rate by a quarter percentage point to 1.5 percent to help the economy combat reccession. It is the lowest rate since the country came into existence after the split of former Czechoslovakia in 1993.

April 25th, 2009 Former KKK leader ordered to leave Czech RepublicPRAGUE — Czech authorities have released former Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke from detention and ordered him to leave the country. Police spokeswoman Katerina Rendlova says Duke must leave the Czech Republic by midnight Saturday after he was detained on suspicion of denying the Holocaust.

April 24th, 2009 Former KKK leader detained in PraguePRAGUE — Former Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke was detained by police in the Czech Republic on Friday on suspicion of denying the Holocaust. Police spokesman Jan Mikulovsky said the action was taken because Duke does that in his book "My Awakening," which is punishable by up to three years in Czech prisons.

March 27th, 2009 PRAGUE - Mirek Topolanek, the Czech Republic's premier, has conceded that his ill-timed remark suggesting that the US measures to battle the global economic crisis would lead to 'a road to hell' were inspired by heavy metal band AC/DC. Czech media reported Friday that Topolanek had told a television show that 'AC/DC played in Prague last week.

December 31st, 2008 PRAGUE - The Czech Republic assumed the six-month rotating presidency of the European Union (EU) Thursday, nearly two decades after communism collapsed in the central European country of 10 million. The country takes over at the EU's helm at a time when the continent is experiencing an economic crisis, as Israel fires rockets on the Gaza Strip and as Russia and Ukraine engage in a gas row.