Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa resigned on Thursday after feeling the country in the midst of an economic crisis in the country. Sri Lankan Parliament Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeyweardana made the announcement on Friday. On Saturday, the Parliament of the country will meet to start the process of choosing a new president. The country hopes to have a new president within the next seven days. Rajapaksa fled Sri Lanka on Wednesday after protesters stormed his home and other government offices. Protesters accuse Rajapaksa of stealing money from the government for years. They also blame his government for mismanaging the economy that caused it to collapse. Rajapaksa has acknowledged that some of his policies contributed to the collapse. FILE- Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa sings the Sri Lankan national anthem during the country’s Independence Day celebration in Colombo, Sri Lanka, February 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena, file)
Months of protests culminated at the weekend, when protesters stormed the president’s home and office and the official residence of Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe. On Wednesday, they occupied Wickremesinghe’s office. THE PRESIDENT LEAVES THE COUNTRY, THE PROTESTERS DECLARE THE PRIME MINISTER’S OFFICE A STATE OF EMERGENCY Protesters initially vowed to hold those positions until a new government is formed, but the movement changed tactics on Thursday, apparently worried that any escalation of violence could undermine their message after clashes the previous night outside Parliament left dozens wounded. Army officers stand guard as people throng President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s official residence for the second day since the invasion in Colombo, Sri Lanka, on July 11. (AP/Rafiq Maqbool) Rajapaksa’s replacement will serve as president for the remainder of his term, which ends in 2024. The new leader could potentially choose a new prime minister, who would have to be approved by Parliament. FINANCIAL PROTESTS RAGE GLOBALLY AS INFLATION, UKRAINE WAR, CORONAVIRUS CHALLENGES The country of about 22 million people faces a severe shortage of foreign currency, which has limited essential imports of fuel, food and medicine. The shortage has pushed the island into its worst economic situation in 70 years. Protesters demanding the resignation of Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa swim in a pool inside the Sri Lankan Presidential Palace complex in Colombo on July 9, 2022. (AFP via Getty Images) Sri Lanka has been without fuel shipments for the past few weeks, forcing the closure of schools and limiting gasoline and diesel for essential services. Residents are skipping meals to line up for hours for scarce fuel. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP And the country’s inflation levels are soaring. of Sri Lanka Inflation reached 54.6% in June. The Associated Press contributed to this report. Lorraine Taylor is a contributing editor at Fox News. News tips can be sent to [email protected] or on Twitter @LorraineEMT.