Protesters in Sri Lanka burn politicians’ homes as the country plunges into chaos as the government gives a “shoot on sight” order. As irate Sri Lankans defy a nationwide curfew to protest what they say is the government’s mishandling of the country’s worst economic crisis since 1948, police-reported Tuesday that 75 homes had been damaged in addition to those destroyed.
After violence left at least eight people dead since Monday, the Ministry of Defense instructed troops to shoot anyone spotted damaging state property or assaulting authorities on Tuesday, however it is unclear if all of the deaths were directly tied to the protests. The violence has left more than 200 people injured.
The 22-million-strong country is undergoing a terrible economic crisis, with prices of daily products skyrocketing and widespread power outages lasting weeks. Thousands of anti-government protestors have taken to the streets since March, calling for the government’s resignation.
On Tuesday, the country’s former Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa was rescued by the military in a pre-dawn operation hours after he resigned following confrontations between pro-and anti-government protestors. A senior security source told CNN that the military was deployed after demonstrators attempted to break into the prime minister’s ‘Temple Trees’ private residential compound twice overnight.
His resignation came after live television footage on Monday showed government supporters wielding sticks hitting demonstrators and tearing down and burning their tents across the capital. According to witnesses interviewed by CNN, dozens of homes were set on fire across the country as a result of the unrest.
Until Thursday, a national curfew has been imposed.
However, it is unclear whether the curfew and the resignation of the prime minister will be enough to keep the country’s increasingly combustible situation under control.