The Dispatch

Fatal shooting in school in Slovakia

A handout photo made available by Slovak Police Force shows ambulances in a primary school in Vrutky, Slovakia, 11 June 2020. A person attacked a primary school with a knife,…

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Seven eastern EU member states set to oppose asylum seekers relocation mechanism

Seven eastern EU member states are opposing the possibility of the EU creating a mechanism to relocate asylum seekers between countries. In a letter to the European Commission, the interior…

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Poland to open its Eu borders on Saturdays, flights to start on Tuesday

Poland will open its borders with fellow European Union countries on Saturday and allow international flights from next Tuesday, the prime minister said on Wednesday, as the country unfreezes its…

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Austria to open borders to Italy, 20+ European countries

Austria will reopen its borders to Italy and lift a quarantine requirement for travellers from over 20 other European countries next week, officials said, in a further easing of restrictions…

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Photo Story: Violent storms over Poland

A damaged car, a roof covered with plastic foils and debris all over is seen after a whirlwind over the weekend in the town of Kaniow in southern Poland. As…

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Romanian shoemaker invents social distancing shoes

Romanian shoemaker Grigore Lup, 55, invented the social distancing shoes in a bid to save his small business in the midst of the Coronavirus crisis. The shoemaker is manufacturing by…

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Poland to extend ban on international flights to June 16

Poland plans to extend a ban on international flights until June 16 due to the coronavirus pandemic, state-run news agency PAP said late on Friday, citing a government decree. State-controlled…

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Poland’s biggest coal miner says only has enough cash to pay salaries until July

Poland's biggest coal miner, state-run PGG, has enough cash to pay salaries until July as it struggles with a crisis aggravated by the coronavirus pandemic, its chief executive Tomasz Rogala…

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Czechs drop travel curbs for Austria, Germany, Hungary from noon on Friday

The Czech government agreed to fully open its borders with neighbours Austria and Germany and allow unrestricted travel to and from Hungary from noon on Friday, Prime Minister Andrej Babis…

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Many hotel, restaurant owners in Romania in severe financial difficulty

Many hotel owners in Romania will put their properties up for sale this year, said Calin Ile, president of the Romanian Hotel Industry Federation (FIHR0 said. He estimates that only…

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Ryanair Austrian unit reaches deal avoiding shutdown

Ryanair's Lauda airline has reached a new collective wage agreement with the trade union to ensure that its Vienna base will not shut down, the Austrian Chamber of Commerce (WKO)…

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COVID-19 pushes Poland to accelerate exit from ailing coal industry

Poland, the European Union's biggest hard coal producer, is considering closing at least three mines in coming months as the coronavirus pandemic forces it to accelerate its exit from the…

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Austria lifting coronavirus border checks with all neighbours except Italy

Austria is lifting coronavirus-related border restrictions including quarantines for all neighbouring countries except Italy as of Thursday, Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg said on Wednesday. Austria borders eight countries and had…

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Czech Republic, Slovakia to fully reopen mutual border from midnight

Czech Republic and Slovakia will fully restore free movement between the two central European neighbours from midnight, the two countries' prime ministers said on Wednesday. The announcement was made…

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UPDATED: Poland to hold presidential election on June 28

Poland picked June 28 on Wednesday as a new date for a presidential election that was cancelled last month amid the coronavirus pandemic, setting the stage for a short campaign…

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Poland resumes air traffic amid coronavirus pandemic

A passenger aircraft of Polish Airline LOT arrives from Warsaw to the airport Lech Walesa in Gdansk, Poland, 01 June 2020. After a break caused by the ongoing coronavirus COVID-19…

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Romania PM pays fine for not wearing a face mask

Romanian prime minister Ludovic Orban paid a 3,000 lei fine ($690) for breaking his own coronavirus restrictions by not wearing a face mask and smoking indoors. A picture which went…

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Austria opposing Europe’s recovery plan

Austria has stated its opposition to Europe's current 750 billion euro plan to help economies recover from the coronavirus pandemic and wants to negotiate changes to the proposal, the country's…

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Austria insists Italy still hotspot for coronavirus

Italy is still a coronavirus hotspot, the Austrian government said on Thursday. "Italy is still a hotspot, even though in some regions the situation has improved and there is a…

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Commemoration ceremony on anniversary of Budapest sightseeing boat tragedy

Lit Candles during the ecumenical commemoration service of the Panorama Deck Shipping Company held for the victims of the capsized Hableany sightseeing boat near the scene of the accident, at…

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Austria, Italy, Portugal, Spain receive €279m after natural disasters in 2019

On Thursday, Budgets Committee Members approved €279 million in EU aid following extreme weather events in Austria, Italy, Portugal and Spain in 2019. The draft report by rapporteur José Manuel Fernandes, (EPP,…

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Poland’s ruling party sees June 28 as presidential vote deadline

The last possible date that Poland could hold a presidential election on is June 28, the leader of the ruling nationalist Law and Justice (PiS) party said on Wednesday, amid…

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Hungary employment falls by 73,000 in April

Hungary's unemployment rate rose slightly to an average of 3.8% in the February-April period from 3.7% in January-March, the Central Statistical Office (KSH) said on Wednesday, adding that only partially…

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Photo Story: Hungarian helping hand in the Ukraine

Members of a Hungarian folk band wear and distribute embroidered face masks as protection against the coronavirus to passers-by in the center of Uzhhorod, Ukraine. Via EPA-EFE/Janos Nemes

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Slovenia could lose up to 830 million euros of tourism income due to coronavirus

Slovenia could lose up to 830 million euros ($909.68 million) of income from foreign tourists due to the coronavirus epidemic, the Bank of Slovenia said in a report on Wednesday.…

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Polish prosecutors investigating suspected money laundering in small state-controlled bank

Polish prosecutors have started an investigation into suspected money laundering at a small state-controlled lender BOS Bank, Dziennik Gazeta Prawna daily said on Tuesday, quoting an unnamed source. The regional…

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EU approves €8 billion Austrian scheme to compensate companies for damages related to COVID-19

The European Commission has found a €8 billion Austrian scheme to compensate companies for damages related to the coronavirus outbreak to be in line with EU State aid rules. Under…

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Austria’s President apologises after being caught by police in restaurant after curfew

The President of Austria has apologized after he and his wife were caught by police in a restaurant after a curfew in place to slow the spread of coronavirus. Alexander…

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Photo Story: Poland campaigns for research funds related to the coronavirus pandemic

A huge mural featuring players of the Polish national soccer team on the wall of one of the tenements in Gdansk, Poland. The painting with images of Jacek Goralski, Robert…

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Ryanair’s Lauda airline to close Vienna base with loss of 300 jobs

Ryanair's Austrian airline Lauda on Friday said it would shut down its main Vienna base on May 29 with the loss of more than 300 jobs in Austria after it…

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Photo Story: Prague Airport returns slowly to normality

Air staff wearing protective face mask walk at an arrivals area of the Vaclav Havel airport in Prague, Czech Republic. Czech Airlines resumed operations from Vaclav Havel Airport Prague from…

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Poland to extend ban on international flights until June 6

Poland plans to extend a ban on international flights by two weeks until June 6 due to the coronavirus pandemic, state-run news agency PAP said on Friday citing infrastructure ministry…

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Austria to expand its testing to screen hotel staff

Austria plans a hefty expansion of its coronavirus testing just to screen hotel staff, in the hope of luring Germans and other tourists this summer and banishing the uncomfortable memory…

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Poland adopts rules to prevent takeovers by non-EU investors

The Polish government has approved regulations aimed at making it difficult for investors from outside the European Union to take over companies cheaply that Poland considers strategic for its economy,…

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Austria says reopening Italian border now would be irresponsible

Reopening Austria's border with Italy now would be "irresponsible in light of the epidemiological data from Italy", Chancellor Sebastian Kurz told Austrian daily Tiroler Tageszeitung on Wednesday. He said he…

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Employment in Poland falls at fastest rate since 2009 due to the coronavirus

The number of people in work in Poland fell much more than expected in April, data showed on Wednesday, as what had until recently been a fast-growing jobs market posted…

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Photo Story: Living in the Present Future exhibition in Poland

People visit 'Living in the Present Future' exhibition at the National Museum in Szczecin, northwestern Poland, 19 May 2020. The National Museum in Szczecin and Bornholms Kunstmuseum have prepared a…

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Schools in Poland may remain closed until the end of June

Polish schools will most probably remain closed until the end of June, when children start summer holidays, government spokesman Piotr Muller told public radio on Wednesday. Schools have been closed…

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Poland expects Russia to continue delivering gas to Europe

Poland expects Russia to continue sending the same or similar amounts of gas it did before their transit deal expired earlier this week according to auction results and potential delays in the…

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Czech Republic registers biggest daily rise in Covid-19 cases in four weeks

The number of new coronavirus cases in the Czech Republic showed its biggest daily rise in four weeks and climbed above 100 for the first time this month, the Health…

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Poland expected to re-open borders on June 15th

Poland could re-open its borders on June 15, before lifting all remaining coronavirus curbs on July 1, Deputy Prime Minister Jadwiga Emilewicz told the Puls Biznesu daily in an interview…

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Czech Airlines seeks state loans but refuses deal to hand shares to Government

Czech Airlines owner Smartwings said on Monday it is seeking state loans or guarantees, but has no interest in opening the way for the Czech government to take up to…

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Hungary expects emergency powers to end by early June

The government of Hungary's nationalist prime minister Viktor Orban expects that much-criticised emergency powers it adopted in response to the coronavirus pandemic will end by early June, his chief of…

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Photo Story: Poland prepares to celebrate the centenary of Pope John Paul II

Faithful gather in front of the Minor Basilica of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary to participate in the mass in Wadowice, Poland, 17 May 2020. St. John Paul…

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Polish archbishop refers child abuse negligence case to Vatican

The Polish Catholic Church’s most senior archbishop notified the Vatican on Saturday of a Polish bishop accused of shielding priests known to have sexually abused children. The referral, unprecedented in…

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Austrian borders with Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Hungary to reopen June 15

Austria's borders with the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary will fully reopen on June 15, the interior ministry said on Saturday, extending an easing of border controls to its…

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Police used tear gas in Poland against protesters demanding businesses reopen

Police in Warsaw used tear gas on Saturday against protesters demanding the government act faster to allow businesses to reopen following a coronavirus shutdown. Hundreds of protesters gathered in Warsaw’s…

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Justice Selection – Poland

Judge Piotr Gaciarek arrives for the third day of the general meeting of judges of the Supreme Court in Warsaw, Poland, 12 May 2020. It is to select five candidates…

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Protests in Slovenia, as Covid-19 epidemic ‘end’ declaration is labelled ‘economic’ and unhealthy

Thousands of cyclists took over the centre of Ljubljana once again on Friday to protest against Slovenia's centre-right government of Prime Minister Janez Jansa, less than a day after the government…

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Hungarian PM Orban hopes industry will expand quickly from June

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban hopes that the industrial manufacturing sector, which represents close to a third of the country's economy, will return to its pre-crisis expansion tempo from…

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Romania keeps most international flights suspended as it ends state of emergency

Flights from Romania to countries with high numbers of COVID-19 cases and flights from these countries to Romania will continue to be suspended after May 15, when the state of…

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MEPs call for financial support to Hungary to be withheld if democratic infringements persist

In a debate with EC Vice-President Vera Jourová and the Croatian Presidency of the EU, a majority of Members of the European Parliament underlined that the emergency measures taken by…

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Slovenia the first European country to declare its coronavirus epidemic over

The Slovenian government late on Thursday called an official end to its coronavirus epidemic, becoming the first European country to do so, after authorities confirmed less than seven new coronavirus…

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Photo Story: Ten more deaths from Covid-19 in Romania

Ten more deaths from Covid-19 were reported in Romania on Thursday, bringing the country’s total death toll to 1,046 as the government warned people to continue following social distancing rules…

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Photo story: Children’s toys adapt to the times

Toy figurines named 'Igracek' wearing protective mask are displayed at the Efko-karton company in Nove Veseli, Czech Republic. The legendary Czech toy figures, known in the world as 'Pokeeto', are…

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Hungary to ease some virus restrictions in Budapest next week

Hungary's government is considering some easing of restrictions to contain the spread of coronavirus in Budapest from next week due to a decline in the number of infections, Prime Minister…

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Czech Republic planning to open borders with Austria, Slovakia in June

The Czech Republic, Slovakia and Austria could open their mutual borders as soon as June 8, allowing residents of the three countries to travel between them, Czech Prime Minister Andrej…

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