by Elaine Jung, Louise Adamou and Swaminathan Natarajan. Colombo, May 19, 2019: On 18 May 2009, a brutal conflict which lasted almost three decades came to an end. It’s estimated that at least 100,000 people lost their lives. Many thousands are still missing. The war was fought along ethnic lines.Continue Reading
Colombo, May 16, 2019: Sri Lankan authorities say Buddhist groups were likely to blame for a wave of anti-Muslim riots that swept the island in the second week of May in apparent retaliation for Easter bombings. The April 21 attacks, claimed by the Islamic State of Iraq and the LevantContinue Reading
Rome, May 16, 2019: Pope Francis took eight children rescued from crisis-hit Libya for a ride in his popemobile on May 15, the youngsters grinning and snapping photos as they whizzed round Saint Peter’s Square. The children, wearing T-shirts reading “Welcome, Protect, Promote, Integrate”, hailed from Syria, Nigeria and theContinue Reading
Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, May 16, 2019: Just one day after six Catholics were murdered by gunmen in Burkina Faso, four more Catholics were shot and killed in the northwest African country. On May 13 unknown gunmen interrupted a religious procession in a village near Kongoussi, a northwest city of theContinue Reading
Colombo, May 15 2019: Catholic officials and parents in Sri Lanka are hopeful that church-run schools will begin to reopen soon. Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith, leader of Catholics in the country, had called for the school closure after the devastating Easter Sunday attacks on churches and hotels. All of the islandContinue Reading
Colombo, May 14, 2019: Mob attacks on Muslim communities in Sri Lanka’s northwest have left one person dead and dozens of shops and mosques destroyed, a government minister said Tuesday, as communal violence worsened in the wake of Easter bombings that killed more than 250 people. A Muslim man wasContinue Reading
New Delhi, May 14, 2019: Around 100 Indians were among 600 foreigners Sri Lanka deported in the first week of May. They included 200 Muslim religious preachers from India, Pakistan and Maldives who were suspected to be engaged in radicalization in the Sri Lankan mosques. The preachers allegedly maintained terrorContinue Reading
Rome, May 12, 2019: Girls freed from the clutches of human traffickers worldwide are given shelter by nuns from the Talitha Kum network, which is marking its 10th anniversary with support from Pope Francis. “We have sisters who go into the streets, but also to refugee camps, schools, tea plantations,Continue Reading
Colombo, May 12, 2019: Catholics in the Sri Lankan cities of Colombo and Negombo, where churches were targeted by suicide bombers on Easter Sunday, have held their first Sunday morning masses since the attacks that killed more than 250 people. Police stood guard at every entrance to St Lucia’s cathedralContinue Reading
Vietnam, May 12, 2019: A Friday announcement on the Bui Chu Diocese’s website said the plan to dismantle the church in the northern province of Nam Dinh, set to begin Monday, will be delayed after discussion among priests and those “who truly want the best for the church.” The announcement,Continue Reading
