Prague - The Czech parliament's lower house Wednesday approved a treaty establishing the International Criminal Court (ICC), a body set up to punish war crimes and genocide.

Prague - The Czech parliament's lower house Wednesday postponed an initial vote on Czech-US treaties that allow the United States to place a missile defence facility on Czech soil.

The house adjourned a debate on the US project and may return to the issue on Thursday.

Czech Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek lacks a majority for the US plans in the closely divided 200-seat chamber.

Prague - The Czech parliament's lower house Wednesday began debating Czech-US treaties on placing a planned US missile defence radar base on Czech soil.

Czech Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek lacks a clear majority for the US plans in the closely divided lower house.

He cancelled a White House meeting with US President George W Bush planned for Wednesday in order to back the treaties in the chamber.

Several lawmakers for the Greens, the junior coalition partner, either reject the project or would like to wait for a new US administration before making the decision.

Topolanek asked lawmakers to pass the treaties in the first vote and postpone the second and final vote until after a new US president takes office.

Prague - Czechs began Monday two days of celebrations to mark the 90th anniversary of founding of their first independent state, the former Czechoslovakia.

As part of the commemorations, the country planned to stage its first military parade since the communist era.

On Monday, Czech and Slovak presidents, Vaclav Klaus and Ivan Gasparovic, planned to lay wreaths at the statue of former Czechoslovakia's first president, Tomas Garrigue Masaryk.

Czech and Slovak leaders were also scheduled to attend an opening of an exhibit at the country's National Museum dedicated to former Czechoslovakia's 90th birthday.

Prague - Czech Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek's party lost the Senate run-off elections Saturday in a defeat that could reshape the Czech Republic's EU presidency in the first half of next year.

The loss could topple the premier and empower vocal European Union critic President Vaclav Klaus, just weeks before the country takes over at the helm of the 
27-member EU bloc on January 1.

Analysts said a boost to the followers of the eurosceptic president could weaken the Czech presidency.

Prague - A Czech court Friday sentenced six people to prison for torturing two boys whose ordeal came to light when a neighbour accidentally tuned in to a camera trained on a naked, tied-up child.

Klara Mauerova, 31, was sentenced to nine years for the abuse of her two sons. Her sister, accused of inciting the torture, drew 10 years and four others were sentenced to up to seven years' prison.

The case came to light in the southeastern town of Kurim in May 2007, shocking Czechs much as incest father Josef Fritzl upset Austrians this spring.

The tormentors, four of whom had worked with children, beat the brothers, locked them up in cages, cut them and burned them with cigarettes.