President Václav Klaus criticized politicians' inability to agree on a coalition government in his New Year's speech. He said he doesn't want to see a government that has its support based on a defector from any party and called for internal unity within the parties. He likened the current political scene to a civil Cold War.

EXECUTION

The Dec. 30 hanging death of former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein will help Iraq come to terms with its violent past and move forward, Foreign Minister Alexandr Vondra said in a statement released later that day. "The end of the Saddam Hussein era will move Iraq closer to stability and democracy," the statement said. Slovakia took a cooler stance towards the execution, saying in a statement that it rejects capital punishment in all situations.

CHARGED

Authorities have charged a Russian man after a passenger plane made an emergency landing at Ruzyně Airport Dec. 28, a court spokeswoman told the Czech News Agency (ČTK) Dec. 29. The Aeroflot flight from Moscow to Geneva was forced to land after the man became aggressive with the crew and demanded the plane divert to Egypt.

RECORD

Unseasonably warm temperatures on New Year's Day beat previous records set in 1860 and 1921 by a razor-thin margin of 0.1 degrees, the Czech Hydrometeorological Institute told ČTK Jan. 1. A peak temperature of 12.5 degrees Celsius (54.5 degrees Fahrenheit) was measured in Prague at 2 p.m. Warm weather is predicted to last until at least the second week of January.

REGISTERED

More than 200 gay couples have registered as same-sex partners since the registered partnership law went into effect July 1. Businesses are adjusting to accommodate people with the new status, Mladá fronta Dnes wrote Jan.2. Banks, for instance, are preparing special loans for registered partners.

CRIME