Sri Lanka terror attack
On April 21, at least 321 people, including more than 38 foreigners, were killed in the terrorist attacks on the island. About 500 more people were injured.
These attacks were the bloodiest in the last 10 years, since the end of the civil war.
Explosions thundered on Easter Sunday in churches and hotels in several cities throughout the country. ISIS has taken responsibility for the attacks, but authorities suspect they worked with a local radical Islamist group. Police have already arrested more than 20 people.
The first six explosions occurred almost simultaneously. Another explosive device, close to the Bandaranaike International Airport, was successfully defused.
Memorial services for the victims were held in many countries. Flowers and candles are carried to the embassies of Sri Lanka throughout the world.
Immediately after the terrorist attacks, tourists began to leave the country in mass. Diplomats continue to search among the victims for foreign citizens.
France – Notre Dame fire and latest Yellow Vest protests
On Tuesday morning, firefighters extinguished the last remains of the fire in Notre Dame de Paris, which burst into flames on Monday evening April 15th.
According to preliminary data, the load-bearing structures of the cathedral remained unharmed.
An emergency meeting of architects is taking place in Paris to determine whether firefighters can continue to work inside the building.
The first reports of a fire in the cathedral came in on Monday at about 19:00 local time. It is assumed that the fire began on the scaffolding erected above the roof of the cathedral in connection with restoration work.
For more details, see UWI’s article.
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Later in France, the Yellow vests protests continued. The Yellow vests took the streets for the 23rd time since mid-November 2018.
Paris authorities reported that they had forbidden demonstrations in the area of the Champs Elysées, as well as near the Notre Dame Cathedral, which suffered from the fire. The authorities claim they are trying to prevent possible further damage to the cathedral’s structures (but in fact, of course, it was an attempt ward off the protests and divert attention from widespread anger against Emmanuel Macron).
Northern Macedonia presidential elections took place on Sunday
The candidates included the ruling Social Democratic Union of Macedonia’s Stevo Pendarovski, the VMRO-DPMNE’s Gordana Silyanovska-Davkova and the ex-ambassador of Macedonia to the European Union, Blerim Reka.
This is the first general election since the former Yugoslav Republic officially changed its name to Northern Macedonia in February.
The Mueller report
Washington continues to discuss possible steps for Congress to take after the publication last week of the edited version of the report by Special Prosecutor Robert Muller on the Russia-gate investigation. Democrats in the House of Representatives are demanding that they provide a complete, unedited version of the document stating that there was no collusion between the inner circle of President Donald Trump and Russia, believing it is possible that the President obstructed justice.