A major rally was scheduled for Saturday to demand the resignation of the president of Sri Lanka, who is facing an unprecedented shortage of basic necessities.
Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa fled his official residence in Colombo on Saturday minutes before it was stormed by protesters demanding his resignation, a defense source told AFP. “The president was escorted to safety“, indicated this source. “He is still the president, he is protected by a military unit“, she added.
Local television channels showed images of hundreds of people climbing the gates of the presidential palace in the heart of the capital. Tens of thousands of people had earlier taken part in a demonstration to demand the resignation of Gotabaya Rajapaksa, held responsible for the unprecedented economic crisis which is hitting Sri Lanka and causing galloping inflation and severe shortages of fuel, electricity and electricity. ‘food.
Security forces had imposed a curfew on Friday to try to discourage protesters from taking to the streets, but the measure was lifted after opposition parties, human rights activists and the country’s bar association threatened to sue the chief of police. The curfew had been largely ignored by protesters anyway, some of whom even forced railway authorities on Saturday to take them by train to Colombo to take part in the rally, officials told AFP.
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