Sri Lankan medical sources confirmed that the death toll from the violence has risen to at least 8 people since Monday, and police said that among the dead were a member of Parliament and his bodyguard.
Violence has continued since suspected supporters of Prime Minister Mahinda Rajaphasa on Monday morning stormed a sit-in square in front of the president's office in the capital, Colombo. Appeals from police, government and opposition political leaders failed to quell popular tension.
Despite the prime minister’s resignation yesterday, riots continued at night, and protesters set fire to the house of the resigned prime minister and the homes of representatives of the ruling party in parliament, and medical sources estimated the number of wounded at more than 200.
Parliament Speaker Mahinda Yaba Abiwardena called for a session of Parliament to discuss the political and security situation in the country, while professional unions called for a comprehensive strike starting tomorrow, Wednesday, with the aim of forcing the president to submit his resignation.
The protests erupted 6 weeks ago due to the lack of fuel and basic materials in the country and the rise in prices, and the economic crisis caused a severe political crisis, and the protesters are demanding the resignation of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa (brother of the Prime Minister) and the implementation of political, administrative and economic reforms that include canceling a constitutional amendment that gives the president broad powers.
Last Friday, President Rajapaksa declared a state of emergency for the second time in five weeks, granting wide powers to the security forces, including allowing them to arrest suspects and detain them for long periods without judicial oversight, and authorized the deployment of soldiers to maintain order and support the police.
The US ambassador to the country, Julie Chung, expressed her concern about the new state of emergency, noting that Sri Lanka "needs long-term solutions to resolve the crisis."
For its part, the European Union considered that President Rajapaksa's decree could have the opposite effect.