Czech morning headlines: Police end search for missing rafter

Police have ended their search for a man who fell off a raft in the Vltava river in Český Krumlov. Five people were on the raft when it overturned at a weir, and four swam to safety. Divers and police looked for the remaining person, but could not locate him. They will continue to make random checks of the river. Police have warned that due to heavy rain, the river is more dangerous than usual, and rafters should not overestimate their abilities. 

The average end price of electricity increased by nearly 5 percent month-on-month to CZK 4,704 per megawatt-hour (MWh) excluding VAT in June, while the price of a megawatt-hour of gas fell by 4.6 percent month-on-month to CZK 2,815 excluding VAT. In the coming weeks and months, however, analysts at price tracking site Ušetřeno.cz said that they expect energy to become significantly more expensive. According to their analysis, the price of gas will rise again in the second half of the year, and significantly.

Actors Benicio del Toro and Geoffrey Rush have arrived at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival. Both will receive awards and introduce some of their past film hits. Rush today will be at a screening of “Shine” and at a moderated talk about his career. He will be at a screening of ‘Quills on July 8. Rush told Czech Television that when he was in Prague in 1998 to film “Les Miserables” he bought puppets of the famous Spejbl and Hurvínek characters for his kids. Del Toro will introduce “Traffic” on July 8 and “The Usual Suspects” on July 9.

Yesterday’s decision of the European Parliament, which supported the temporary inclusion of nuclear and gas among green investments, is excellent news not only for the Czech Republic but also for the whole of Europe, Prime Minister Petr Fiala said. "This opens the way to energy self-sufficiency, which is absolutely crucial for our future," he said. The goal of the rules is to motivate investors to support energies that replace coal and oil. Opponents of nuclear and gas argued that these sources are not ecological and cannot be used in the transition to a clean economy. Their supporters claim that without these two sources, the EU will not be able to get rid of coal, which produces significantly higher emissions.

The Czech EU presidency is coming at the right moment at the time of the continuing Russian aggression in Ukraine, EC President Ursula von der Leyen said in reaction to Prime Minister Petr Fiala's address to the European Parliament yesterday. The same view was voiced by the leader of the European People's Party Manfred Weber. Other MEPs agreed that the Czech Republic was ahead of a number of complex challenges, including ensuring unity for further support to Ukraine, the removal of energy dependence on Russia, and the mitigation of the impact of inflation on citizens of the EU.

Czech PM Petr Fiala addressed European Parliament today under the Czech Republic's EU presidency, and pointed to EU unity in the face of crises caused by Russia as one of his primary goals. Fiala noted inflation, energy, and food crises that have resulted in the wake of Russia's war in Ukraine.

"Along with a conventional war, Russia is waging a hybrid war. It is deliberately provoking a refugee wave, using raw energy materials as a weapon, and with targeted attacks on infrastructure it is causing a food crisis," Fiala said. "In the forthcoming period, the main task will be finding a united and strong consensus on measures that will mitigate the negative impacts of the current crises on our citizens as much as possible."

July 6 is a national holiday in the Czech Republic remembering Catholic reformer Jan Hus, who was burned at the stake in 1415. Church services across the Czech Republic will honor his memory, and include events at Prague's Bethlehem Chapel as well as Husinec, the location of his birth.

The service at Prague's Bethlehem Chapel will begin at 3:00 p.m. and be led by Tomáš Butta of the Czechoslovak Hussite Church. Organizers will also honor the 430th anniversary of the birth of teacher, philosopher, and writer Jan Amos Comenius. The service will be broadcast live on Czech television (ČT2) and radio (Český rozhlas Vltava).

The last Czech tennis player remaining in this year's Wimbledon tournament has been eliminated as Marie Bouzková fell to Tunisia's Ons Jabeur 6-3, 1-6, 1-6 in quarterfinal action on Tuesday. Jabeur will next face Germany's Tatjana Maria on Thursday in the Wimbledon semifinals.

"Even though I lost, I really enjoyed the match," Bouzková told reporters after her defeat. "It was my first quarterfinal at a Grand Slam and right on the center court at Wimbledon. I gave it my all, but Ons simply played great. She improved a lot after the first set and deserved to win."

Two men from the Czech Republic are confirmed dead following the glacier collapse in Italy's Dolomite mountains, Czech Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Lenka Do told journalists on Tuesday. The two men were friends who were travelling together through the mountains.

No other Czechs are missing following the tragedy, Do said, adding that the Foreign Ministry had checked in with about 20 other Czechs in the area. Seven people have now been confirmed to have died in the glacier collapse, while a search continues for others who are missing.

Albania's Supreme Court has upheld a life sentence for Sokol Mjacaj, convicted of murdering two Czech tourists in the country in 2015, reports Albanian media. Mjacaj was originally convicted that year on charges of illegal arms possession and "theft resulting in death" before appealing the verdict.

Mjacaj, 20 at the time of the murders, pretended to be a hitchhiker and attempted to rob the victims at gunpoint. He fired shots into their car, causing a crash which resulted in their deaths. Mjacaj confessed to the crime, but claimed that he only wanted to rob the tourists, not kill them.