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Breaking: Sri Lankan PM’s residence set on fire amid protests

The home of Sri Lanka’s Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe has been set on fire.

Over the past hour the unrest between protesters and police has intensified outside Wickremesinghe’s residence in the country’s capital Colombo.

Where is President Rajapaksa?

As the protests continue, the exact location of Sri Lanka’s President Gotabaya Rajapaksa remains unknown after he earlier fled his official residence.

The property in the country’s capital Colombo has since been stormed by large crowds with protesters demanding his resignation.

Rajapaksa was escorted to safety after people gathered outside the gates, and he is being protected by a military unit, a top defence source told the AFP news agency.

But speaking to Newshour on the World Service from Colombo, the BBC’S Ranga Sirilal explained that no-one knows where the president is.

He said there are claims Rajapaksa is trying to flee Sri Lanka “at any moment” and that he is at the airport.

However, there are other reports that he’s next to Colombo Port amid claims “that two ships that docked at the port were seen loading some travelling bags, suggesting that the president is going to leave”.

What seems more certain, Sirilal added, is that it appears protesters won’t leave the residence until the president resigns and there is some political stability.

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