New temporary shelters for refugees will also be set up in Brno, Ostrava, and Prague. Photo credit: JMK.
Prague, April 3 (CTK) – The Czech Interior Ministry has assumed responsibility for the operation and coordination of assistance centres for Ukrainian refugees from regional authorities, as of Saturday. According to the ministry’s website, this will not affect the functioning of the centres.
People from Ukraine who were driven from their homes by the Russian military attack will still be able to apply for temporary protection, arrange accommodation and spend the night at selected places at the Regional Assistance Centers for Ukraine (KACPU).
“Nothing fundamental has changed for people fleeing the war in Ukraine. They will still be able to apply for temporary protection in all regions,” said Interior Minister Vit Rakusan (STAN).
New temporary shelters for refugees will also be set up in Brno, Ostrava, and Prague, for use by those waiting for the opening of a KACPU or to be granted temporary protection.
The Russian invasion of Ukraine began on 24 February last year.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said in late February this year that more than 8 million Ukrainian refugees had been registered across Europe since the war started, and 5.4 million more people in Ukraine were internally displaced.
The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) said in late February that the war had claimed the lives of at least 8,000 civilians, while noting that the real number of victims of the Russian aggression was probably much higher.
The Czech Republic has already issued more than half a million temporary protection visas to people fleeing Ukraine since the start of the war. These visas give refugees access to public health insurance, education and the labour market. Some of the refugees have returned home or continued to another country, but around 300,000 remain in the Czech Republic, according to previous estimates from the Interior Ministry.
