Ivo Žďárek (6 November 1960 – 20 September 2008) was a
Czech diplomat. He died in the fire in the aftermath of the
Islamabad Marriott Hotel bombing
The Islamabad Marriott Hotel bombing occurred on the night of 20 September 2008, when a dumper truck filled with explosives was detonated in front of the Marriott Hotel in the Pakistani capital Islamabad, killing at least 54 people, injuring ...
trying to rescue people from the burning building.
Early life
He studied at the
in Moscow, at the
Charles University
)
, image_name = Carolinum_Logo.svg
, image_size = 200px
, established =
, type = Public, Ancient
, budget = 8.9 billion CZK
, rector = Milena Králíčková
, faculty = 4,057
, administrative_staff = 4,026
, students = 51,438
, under ...
in
Prague
Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate ...
, at
Stanford University
Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is conside ...
, and the Czech Diplomatic Academy. He had a wife, Jana, and two children.
[ ]
Diplomatic career
Žďárek worked at various diplomatic missions of the
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...
in
Asia
Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an are ...
. He served as consul-general in
Shanghai
Shanghai (; , , Standard Chinese, Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four Direct-administered municipalities of China, direct-administered municipalities of the China, People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the ...
,
People's Republic of China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, most populous country, with a Population of China, population exceeding 1.4 billion, slig ...
from 1995 to 1999.
From 2004 to August 2008, he was the ambassador in
Vietnam
Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making ...
. He then became the ambassador to
Pakistan
Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...
.
Death
Žďárek survived the
bombing of the Islamabad Marriott Hotel but went in to help other survivors get out of the burning building. He called with his mobile phone asking to be rescued but was unable to escape the blaze.
Žďárek's body was returned to his country. A ceremony paying homage to him was held at Prague's airport.
"We are all very saddened, we always appreciated the ambassador’s work considerably,"
Czech President
Václav Klaus
Václav Klaus (; born 19 June 1941) is a Czech economist and politician who served as the second president of the Czech Republic from 2003 to 2013. From July 1992 until the dissolution of Czechoslovakia in January 1993, he served as the second ...
said.
The ceremony was also attended by Žďárek's family and Prime Minister
Mirek Topolánek
Mirek Topolánek (, born 15 May 1956) is a Czech politician and business manager who served as the prime minister of the Czech Republic from 2006 to 2009 and the leader of the Civic Democratic Party (ODS) from 2002 to 2010. Between 2006 and 2 ...
.
[
]
References
External links
Curriculum Vitae of Ivo Žďárek- Embassy of the Czech Republic in Pakistan website
* https://web.archive.org/web/20080923011000/http://www.app.com.pk/en_/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=53574&Itemid=1
{{DEFAULTSORT:Zdarek, Ivo
Ambassadors of the Czech Republic to Vietnam
Ambassadors of the Czech Republic to Pakistan
Charles University alumni
Stanford University alumni
Czech terrorism victims
Terrorism deaths in Pakistan
1960 births
2008 deaths