We’re witnessing the end of the “Belt & Road Project”
#Breaking | Some protesters, holding flags and helmets, broke into the palace, footage from local TV news NewsFirst channel showed. Earlier they overshadowed the cricket where Australis is currently playing.
Footage emerges said to be of President Rajapakse fleeing Sri Lanka aboard a Navy Vessel.
Protesters storm Sri Lankan president’s house, encircle cricket ground
Colombo: Thousands of protesters in Sri Lanka’s commercial capital Colombo broke through police barricades and stormed the president’s official residence on Saturday in one of the largest anti-government marches in the crisis-hit country this year.
Some protesters, holding Sri Lankan flags and helmets, broke into the palace, video footage from local TV news NewsFirst channel showed.
The island of 22 million people is struggling under a severe foreign exchange shortage that has limited essential imports of fuel, food and medicine, plunging it into the worst financial turmoil in seven decades.
Many blame the country’s decline on President Gotabaya Rajapaksa. Largely peaceful protests since March have demanded his resignation.
Thousands of people swarmed into Colombo’s government district, shouting slogans against the president and dismantling several police barricades to reach Rajapaksa’s house.
Police fired shots in the air but were unable to stop the angry crowd from surrounding the presidential residence, a witness said.
Flashback:
“Easter Worshipers” Killed in Sri Lanka Now Up To 290
Horrifying moment a white van explodes in a fireball in Sri Lanka as police try to defuse three bombs inside a day after Easter Sunday terror attack
- Police inspected the vehicle after locals reported it had not moved since Sunday
- They tried to defuse it but it exploded in a fireball near one of bombed churches
- The further blast today has heightened fears of still-undiscovered explosives
The van explodes in a fireball close to St Anthony’s Shrine, one of the churches which was targeted in the Easter Sunday attack
This is the moment a white van exploded into flames today as Sri Lankan police searched the scene of the Easter Sunday terror attack.
Police found three bombs inside the vehicle after locals reported it had been parked near St Anthony’s Shrine, one of the bombing targets, since Sunday.
They tried to defuse the weapons but they detonated instead and sent pedestrians fleeing in panic.
No injuries were reported but the further blast on Monday has heightened fears of still-undiscovered explosives on the streets of Colombo.
The number of people who died in the Easter Sunday attacks in Sri Lanka has risen sharply to 290, police say.
Police said that 24 arrests have now been made, but the government has not yet identified who carried out the attacks.
About 500 people are injured and dozens of foreigners are among the dead.
The country is in shock after the Easter Sunday bombings and a curfew was lifted in the last few hours.
There are reports of social media networks being temporarily restricted to try and stop misinformation spreading.
Popular messaging services like WhatsApp and Facebook are said to be unavailable to many.
How did the attacks unfold?
The first reports of explosions came at about 08:45 (03:15 GMT) local time – with six blasts reported within a small space of time.
Three churches in Negombo, Batticaloa and Colombo’s Kochchikade district were targeted during Easter services and blasts also rocked the Shangri-La, Kingsbury and Cinnamon Grand hotels in the country’s capital.
As police hunted those responsible, two further explosions were reported.
One blast hit near the zoo in Dehiwala, southern Colombo, and an eighth was reported near the Colombo district of Dematagoda during a police raid, killing three officers.
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Image copyrightREUTERSLate on Sunday, the air force said an improvised explosive device had been found and disposed of close to the country’s main airport in the capital, Colombo.
“A PVC pipe which was six feet [1.8m] in length containing explosives in it was discovered,” spokesman Gihan Seneviratne told local media.
What’s known about the attackers?
It remains unclear who was behind the attacks, but 24 arrests were made by police.
The government has said they believe suicide bombs were used at some of the sites.
During a news conference on Sunday evening, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe addressed rumours that officials had had prior intelligence of forthcoming attacks.
“We must look into why adequate precautions were not taken. Neither I nor the Ministers were kept informed,” he said.
“For now the priority is to apprehend the attackers,” he added.