8 dead, 200 injured in Sri Lanka violence; houses of politicians torched

The death toll rose to eight on Tuesday in the unprecedented violence in Sri Lanka that erupted after supporters of former prime minister Mahinda Rajapaksa attacked peaceful antigovernment protesters demanding his ouster over the countrys worst economic crisis that led to acute shortages of staple food fuel and powerOver 200 people have also been injured in the violence in Colombo and other citiesMahinda Rajapaksa 76 resigned as Sri Lankan Prime Minister on Monday amid unprecedented economic turmoil hours after his supporters attacked antigovernment protesters prompting authorities to impose a nationwide curfew and deploy Army troops in the capitalThe violence saw arson attacks on the homes of several politicians including the ancestral home of the Rajapaksas in HambantotaVideo footage showed the entire house of Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa and his younger brother and President Gotabaya Rajapaksa in Medamulana in Hambantota city was burningPrime Minister Mahindas House in Kurunegala was also set on fire by protesters while a mob also destroyed D A Rajapaksa Memorial constructed in the memory of the father of Mahinda and Gotabaya in Medamulana HambantotaChairman of the Imaduwa Pradeshiya Sabha A V Sarath Kumara died following an attack on his residence on Monday Kumara 63 was admitted to the hospital due to a heart condition following the attackOne person was killed following an attack on a popular hotel in Negombo Multiple luxury cars worth millions of rupees were completely destroyedSLPP Member of Parliament Amarakeerthi Athukorala and his security guard died in Nittambuwa on MondayEyewitnesses said that the people who had come with the Member of Parliament to Nittambuwa shot at a group of people protesting against the attack on thepeaceful protesters in front of the Temple Trees and the Presidents Office A 27yearold male died in the shooting incidentTwo people were killed in a shooting that took place at the Weeraketiya Pradeshiya Sabha Chairmans residence on Monday nightA person succumbed to his injuries at the hospital in ColomboThe Colombo national hospital said at least 217 people had been admitted for treatmentSeveral properties of ministers and lawmakers of the ruling coalition were destroyed by the protestersProtesters have also attacked the house of Badulla District parliamentarian Tissa Kuttiarachch and later set it on fireThe house of Puttalam MP Santha Nishantha was completely destroyed due to an arson attackThere have been protests over soaring prices and power cuts since last month Sri Lanka is facing its worst economic crisis since gaining independence from Britain in 1948The crisis is caused in part by a lack of foreign currency which has meant that the country cannot afford to pay for imports of staple foods and fuel leading to acute shortages and very high pricesThousands of demonstrators have hit the streets across Sri Lanka since April 9 seeking the resignation of President Gotabaya and his brother Mahinda as the government ran out of money for vital imports prices of essential commodities have skyrocketed and there are acute shortages in fuel medicines and electricity supplyIn a special Cabinet meeting on Friday President Gotabaya Rajapaksa declared a state of emergency with effect from Friday midnight This is the second time that an emergency was declared in Sri Lanka in just over a month as the island nation was in the grip of the worst economic crisisThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever