This is an OZY Special Briefing, an extension of the Presidential Daily Brief. The Special Briefing tells you what you need to know about an important issue, individual or story that is making news. Each one serves up an interesting selection of facts, opinions, images and videos in order to catch you up and vault you ahead. WHAT TO KNOW What happened? Eight blasts ripped through churches and high-end hotels on Easter Sunday in Sri Lanka’s capital Colombo, its suburb Negombo and the eastern city of Batticaloa, leaving at least 215 people dead and more than 450 injured. The dead include at least 35 foreigners. This was the worst terrorist attack the island nation has suffered since the 2009 end of a brutal three-decade-long civil war against Tamil rebels. Why does it matter? Today’s Sri Lankan blasts were the latest in a spurt of attacks against places of worship around the world. In January, Open Doors, a Christian advocacy group, revealed a 14 percent increase in persecution of Christians worldwide between 2017 and 2018, impacting a whopping 245 million people. Just last month, a man with links to White supremacist groups shot dead 50 people at two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand. In recent weeks, three African American churches in Louisiana were set on fire, and a suspect has been charged with hate crimes. While the cause of last week’s Notre Dame Cathedral disaster was likely accidental, France alone has seen an uptick of vandalization and arson against Christian churches and symbols. Between 2017 and 2018, there was a 17 percent increase in such attacks in France. Following today’s tragedy, Sri Lankan authorities arrested seven suspects in connection with the blasts, but no group has formally claimed responsibility thus far. |