Dinuka Liyanawatte/Reuters Updated 1956 GMT (0356 HKT) 9 July 2022 People protest inside the President’s House in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Saturday, July 9. Dinuka Liyanawatte/Reuters Protesters stormed the official residences of Sri Lanka’s president and prime minister on Saturday as people protested the country’s worsening economic crisis. It began with more than 100,000 people gathering outside the President’s House in Colombo, calling for the resignation of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa. Protesters were later seen inside the building, hanging banners from the balcony and swimming in the residence’s pool. Rajapaksa was not at the scene and had been taken elsewhere, security officials told CNN. Protesters then breached the official residence of Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, according to local media. They also broke into his private residence. Live video broadcast by local media and seen by CNN showed his private residence engulfed in flames as crowds gathered at the scene. Wickremesinghe was not there when he was hacked. he had earlier been moved to a safe location, his office said. Mahinda Yapa, speaker of Sri Lanka’s parliament, said Rajapaksa had informed him she would resign on July 13, the president’s office said late Saturday. Wickremesinghe said he was also willing to step down and pave the way for an all-party government to take over. Sri Lanka is suffering its worst economic crisis in recent history, leaving millions of people struggling to buy food, medicine and fuel. Tens of thousands have taken to the streets in recent months, calling for the country’s leaders to step down amid accusations of mismanaging the economy.
