Good morning from Prague,

PARIS

The radical left party of Jean-Luc Mélenchon is again in hot water following the controversial remarks of its MP Danièle Obono, who has been accused of “justifying terrorism”. Read more.

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BERLIN

Scholz experiences Hamas rocket fire at Ben Gurion airport. As German Chancellor Olaf Scholz was leaving Israel on Tuesday evening following a visit in which he expressed solidarity with the country following the 7 October terrorist attack by Hamas, rocket fire from Gaza forced him to take cover. Read more.

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VIENNA

Austria to introduce checks at Czech border. Austria will introduce stationary controls at the Czech border on Wednesday, a spokesman for the Interior Ministry told APA on Thursday, marking another of Austria’s moves to combat the influx of irregular migrants. Read more.

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THE HAGUE

Dutch to provide additional aid to Gaza this year. The Netherlands will provide an additional €10 million in humanitarian aid to Gaza, outgoing Foreign Trade Minister Liesje Schreinemacher (VVD/Renew) announced in a letter to parliament on Tuesday, despite earlier statements indicating that no extra funds would be made available. Read more.

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STOCKHOLM

The EU bloc should tighten border controls and internal security, Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said in response to Monday’s terrorist attack in Brussels, in which a gunman claiming allegiance to IS shot dead two Swedes, presumably in response to the recent Quran burnings in Sweden. Read more. 

LISBON

Israel will not be participating in Lisbon’s Web Summit following statements by its co-founder, Paddy Cosgrave, who accused Israelis of committing war crimes in their fight against Hamas, Israel’s Ambassador to Portugal, Dor Shapira, revealed on Monday. Read more.

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MADRID

Spain’s Podemos again condemns Israel amid diplomatic tensions. Leader of the left-wing Podemos party Ione Belarra reiterated her condemnation of Israel for its military reprisals in Gaza on Thursday, just hours after the Israeli embassy in Madrid issued a statement accusing some Spanish government members of making “immoral statements” against Tel Aviv. Read more.

BRATISLAVA

The roster of EU environment ministers could soon include Rudolf Huliak, a man nominated by the Slovak National Party who believes the elite invented climate change to take away people’s cars. Read more.

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WARSAW

Polish opposition must not waste chance as snap elections unlikely, says expert. Poland is unlikely to go back to the polls for a snap election even if the opposition’s ability to form a new government is currently uncertain, Olgierd Annusiewicz, a political analyst at Warsaw University, told Euractiv.pl. Read more.

PRISTINA | TIRANA

The wording of a speech given by French President Emmanuel Macron caused quite a stir in Albania and Kosovo as part of it appeared to get lost in translation and led to fears he had unilaterally suspended Kosovo’s long-awaited visa liberalisation, set to come into force on 1 January 2024. Read more.

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BELGRADE 

Serbia signs free trade deal with China. Serbia and China signed several bilateral agreements to strengthen their cooperation on Tuesday, the most important being the free trade agreement, according to which customs duties will no longer apply to Serb and Chinese products from when the agreement comes into force in late spring 2024. Read more.

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SOFIA

Bulgaria views Eurozone entry by 2025 as realistic. January 2025 is practical for Bulgaria to join the Eurozone after the original plan of joining in 2024 was postponed due to inflation and a lack of political will to adopt the necessary legislation, according to the Bulgarian government. Read more.

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BUCHAREST

Romanian PM calls for humanitarian corridors in Gaza. Humanitarian corridors need to be set up in Gaza, and refugees need to be provided with the necessary aid, Romanian Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu told his Israeli counterpart, Benjamin Netanyahu, adding that Israel has the right to defend itself against Hamas attacks. Read more.

• EU: Commission President Ursula von der Leyen participates in Parliament plenary session in preparation of the European Council meeting of 26-27 October, and on situation in Middle East;
• Justice Commissioner Didier Reynders participates in International Competition Network (ICN) annual conference;
• Climate Action Commissioner Wopke Hoekstra holds meetings with Minister for Foreign Affairs Mauro Vieira, Minister for Finance Fernando Haddad, Minister for Environment and Climate Change Marina Silva, Minister for Mines and Energy Alexandre Silveira, in Brasilia, Brazil;
• Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth Commissioner Iliana Ivanova participates in Parliament plenary debate on new european innovation agenda;
• Parliament President Roberta Metsola holds press conference on general budget of the Union for financial year 2024;
• Belgium: PM Alexander De Croo and Sweden’s PM Ulf Kristersson attend tribute to shooting victims;
• France: President Emmanuel Macron hosts Estonia’s PM Kaja Kallas;
• Austria: Ex-chancellor Sebastian Kurz appears in court accused of perjury;
• Georgia: Impeachment hearing in Georgia parliament to remove President Salome Zurabishvili;
• Egypt: German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on official visit;
• North Korea: Russian Foreign Affairs Minister Sergei Lavrov on official visit;

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[Edited by Sarantis Michalopoulos, Daniel Eck, Zoran Radosavljevic, Alice Taylor, Sofia Stuart Leeson]