Early Bird: French prosecutors have not yet begun to decide whether to prosecute Babiš. Venezuela at the UN called for Maduro's release.
The French National Financial Prosecutor's Office allegedly cannot yet comment on whether it will prosecute Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš in the case of purchasing real estate in the south of France. Venezuelan Foreign Minister Yvan Gil said in a speech to the UN Council that he is demanding the immediate release of President Nicolás Maduro.
Authorities in France still unsure whether to prosecute Czech Prime Minister
French prosecutors have not yet started deciding whether to prosecute Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš in the case of purchasing a property in the south of France. The National Financial Prosecutor's Office (PNF) has not yet received the file from investigators, PNF press department head Louis Turgis stated in response to a question from ČTK. Initially, the prosecutor's office claimed that the investigation would be concluded at the turn of last year and this year. The transaction being investigated by French authorities surfaced in leaked documents as part of the so-called Pandora Papers case. According to the French newspaper Le Monde, Babiš bought a villa in the south of France in September 2009 through a chain of offshore companies.
Venezuela Demands Immediate Release of Maduro from US Custody
Venezuelan Foreign Minister Yvan Gil is demanding the immediate release of President Nicolás Maduro, who was abducted last month during a violent attack organized by the United States, as well as his wife Cilia Flores. In a speech to the UN Council on Monday, Gil stated that the American operation, which he called a "systematic campaign," resulted in over 100 deaths. He described Maduro's abduction as a "political operation disguised as a legal debate," reported Al Jazeera.
Walesa: Trump is a Russian lackey or an exceptional leader who prevented nuclear war
American President Donald Trump appears to be a traitor to the Ukrainian cause, but it may turn out that he is an exceptionally intelligent political leader who prevented nuclear hell. This was said by former Polish President and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Lech Walesa. According to him, Trump could be an extremely intelligent political leader who knows that if the United States had unequivocally sided with Kyiv, Russian President Vladimir Putin might have used nuclear weapons. On the eve of the fourth anniversary of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, he also emphasized that this attacked country needs help in every possible way, wrote the server Ceskenoviny.cz.
Czech bookmakers accepted bets for the Winter Olympics amounting to approximately 2.1 billion
Czech betting offices accepted bets for this year's Winter Olympic Games in Italy amounting to approximately 2.1 billion crowns. This is roughly double the amount people bet on the previous Winter Games in Beijing. Interest in betting increased mainly due to the hockey tournament, in which NHL players participated after a long time. Over 80 percent of all bets were placed on hockey games. Bookmakers paid out approximately 90 percent of deposits in winnings to bettors. The most bet-on hockey game was the quarterfinal match between the Czech Republic and Canada. People also bet on their medal favorites in speed skating, biathlon, and snowboarding, as reported by the portal Ceskenoviny.cz.
Prestianni from Benfica received a one-match ban for racism
On Monday, UEFA announced that it has temporarily suspended Benfica player Gianluca Prestianni for one match due to allegations of racially motivated insults towards Real Madrid star Vinicius Júnior. This decision means that Prestianni will miss Wednesday's Champions League playoff rematch between Real and Benfica. Madrid won the first match in Lisbon last Tuesday, with Vinicius scoring the winning goal in the second half. This resulted in Real's 1-0 victory, reported Al Jazeera.
Sources: Ceskenoviny.cz, Al Jazeera
