Churches and governments throughout South Asia and Southeast Asia are becoming increasingly concerned with the continued threats from Isis-inspired groups and persons, given the growing number of church bombings.
Asia
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Catholic Church urges more vigorous crackdown on Sri Lankan militants
The Catholic Church in Sri Lanka urged the government on Monday to crack down on Islamic extremists with more vigor “as if on war footing” in the aftermath of the Easter bombings.
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Sri Lanka president asks for resignations of top security officials
Sri Lanka’s president has asked for the resignations of the defense secretary and national police chief, a dramatic internal shake-up after security forces shrugged off intelligence reports warning of possible attacks before Easter bombings that killed over 350 people, the president’s office said Wednesday.
Posted inDispatches, Politics & Society
Sri Lankan cardinal demands answers about security lapses after Easter bombings
Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe claimed he and other top government officials were not told about a possible threat and told local media “we must look into why adequate precautions were not taken.”
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Explosions kill at least 207 in Sri Lanka on Easter Sunday
Since the end of the nation’s 26-year civil war, in which the Tamil Tigers, a rebel group from the ethnic Tamil minority, sought independence from ethnic Sinhala Buddhist majority Sri Lanka, the country has seen sporadic ethnic and religious violence, but the scale of Sunday’s bloodshed recalled the worst days of the war,
Posted inDispatches, Politics & Society
GoodNews: How one Jesuit parish is bringing food and health care to the margins in East Timor
The Jesuit program’s emphasis on nutrition, health and education components is a trifecta of basic social needs that its sponsors say are essential for the nation’s future development.
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20 dead as bombs target Sunday Mass in Philippine cathedral
JOLO, Philippines (AP) — Two bombs minutes apart tore through a Roman Catholic cathedral on a southern Philippine island where Muslim militants are active, killing at least 20 people and wounding 111 others during a Sunday Mass, officials said. Witnesses said the first blast inside the Jolo cathedral in the provincial capital sent churchgoers, some […]
Posted inFaith, Faith in Focus
The Louisiana Jesuit who fought for truth and justice in war-torn Sri Lanka
In 1983, Sri Lanka descended into a bitter and prolonged ethnic conflict. Harry Miller, S.J., then almost 60, was thrust into a new role as witness, advocate, intermediary and protector not only for his students but for anyone in Batticaloa who sought his help.
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CRS working in Indonesia to assess needs of tsunami survivors
Catholic Relief Services is working with local partners to help determine the greatest needs of survivors of Indonesia’s Dec. 22 tsunami.
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Vietnam and the Vatican agree to upgrade diplomatic relations in near future
“They shared the belief that this step will help relations between the two sides grow and develop further,” said the statement, released Dec. 20.