Sri Lanka protesters storm president's residence and office in fury at economic meltdown
Thousands of protesters in Sri Lanka's commercial capital Colombo stormed the president's official residence and his secretariat on Saturday, amid months of mounting public anger over the country's worst economic crisis in seven decades.
Some protesters, holding Sri Lankan flags and helmets, broke into the president's residence, video footage from a local TV news channel showed.
Thousands of people swarmed into Colombo's government district, shouting slogans against the president and dismantling several police barricades to reach Rajapaksa's house, a witness told Reuters.
Police fired shots in the air but were unable to stop the angry crowd from surrounding the presidential residence, the witness said.
TV footage also showed thousands of protesters breaking open the gates of the sea-front presidential secretariat, which has been the site of a sit-in protest for months, and entering the premises.
Military personnel and police at both locations were unable to hold back the crowd, as they chanted slogans asking President Gotabaya Rajapaksa to step down.
Two defence ministry sources said President Rajapaksa was removed from the official residence on Friday for his safety ahead of the planned rally over the weekend. Reuters could not immediately confirm his whereabouts.
Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe on Saturday summoned an emergency party leaders meeting to discuss the situation and come to a swift resolution, his office said. He has also requested the speaker to summon parliament, a statement said.
Wickremesinghe has also been moved to a secure location, a government source said.
A Facebook livestream from inside the president's house showed hundreds of protesters, some draped in flags, packing into rooms and corridors,
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