Ex-Sri Lankan Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa and his family retreat to a naval base, triggering riots

According to a source, a protest began in front of Sri Lanka’s Trincomalee Naval Base on Tuesday when allegations surfaced that former Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa and some of his family members had arrived after leaving the government house in Colombo.

On Monday, supporters of then-Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa beat nonviolent anti-government protestors demanding his resignation over the country’s greatest economic crisis, which resulted in severe shortages of staple foods, fuel, and electricity.

Trincomalee is a port city on Sri Lanka’s northeast coast. On Monday, arson assaults were carried out on the residences of many lawmakers, including the Rajapaksas’ ancestral home in Hambantota. The entire house of Mahinda Rajapaksa and his younger brother, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, in Medamulana, Hambantota, was on fire, according to video evidence.