Violence Erupts in Sri Lanka After Leader’s Brother Quits as PM
- Protesters set fire to houses of Rajapaksa allies, reports say
- President has called on opposition to form unity government
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Violence erupted in Sri Lanka on Monday evening after the brother of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa resigned as prime minister, with local reports saying protesters targeted the homes and properties of ruling-party lawmakers after pro-government groups attacked the demonstrators.
The ancestral home of the Rajapaksa family in the southern district of Hambantota was set on fire, and police were forced to use tear gas to disperse protesters who tried to storm the prime minister’s residence in Colombo’s Temple Trees neighborhood, the DailyMirror newspaper reported. Several calls to the police spokesman seeking confirmation of the news reports went unanswered.