Former Sri Lanka prime minister Mahinda Rajapaksa has sought refuge at a naval base in the southern town of Trincomalee, Bloomberg reported Tuesday afternoon, hours after security forces evacuated him from Colombo from the clutches of furious protesters who set fire to military vehicles and stormed the gates of his residence. Bloomberg cited local reports that said a mob had gathered outside the base on speculation the ex-PM and his family were inside.
Trincomalee is a port city on the northeast coast of Sri Lanka.
Violence erupted across the island nation – violence that now threatens to derail crucial bailout talks with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and exacerbate the economic crisis – Monday evening after Rajapaksa quit.
Mahinda Rajapaksa is the younger brother of president Gotabaya Rajapaksa.
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Protesters targeted ‘Temple Trees’ – the colonial-era building that is the Lankan PM’s home – and managed to break into the compound before Rajapaksa and his family could be safely evacuated.
Police fired tear gas and warning shots in the air to hold back the mobs. Earlier protesters set fire to a military truck to try and block the main gate and security forces’ access to the compound.
Protesters also assaulted a top Sri Lankan police officer and set fire to his vehicle; this was also near the prime minister’s residence. Senior deputy inspector-general Deshabandu Tennakoon, the highest-ranking police officer in Colombo ‘required emergency treatment…’ news agency AFP said.
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Events in Sri Lanka have moved at a breakneck speed over the past 48 hours. At least eight people have died in the violence and over 200 injured in violence in capital Colombo and other cities.
One of the dead is a MP from the ruling party – Amarakeerthi Athukorala – who reportedly shot himself after killing two people, including a 27-year-old man.
The ancestral home of the Rajapaksas, in the southern Hambantota district, was set on fire, as was a museum dedicated to the influential family and dozens of buildings belonging to his loyalists.
How Sri Lanka PM Rajapaksa was evacuated as protesters stormed his home
Sri Lanka is fighting a massive economic crisis made worse by rapidly depleting foreign exchange reserves, which means it cannot even afford to buy food, fuel, medicines and other essential goods.
It has been bailed out so far by India, which has offered over $2.5 billion in basic goods, and another $1 billion in fuel aid, including petrol and diesel.
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The Lankan government has also secured $600 million in aid from the World Bank. However, with forex reserves below $50 million, the situation is dire; finance minister Ali Sabry said Sri Lanka is on the brink of bankruptcy.
With input from AFP, Bloomberg
