Thousands of protesters have invaded President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s residence in Sri Lanka’s capital, Colombo.
After months of protests over the mismanagement of the country’s economic crisis, demonstrators from all over the country marched to Colombo demanding his resignation.
According to reports, he has already been relocated to a more secure location.
They swarmed into Colombo’s government district, shouting slogans such as “Gota go home!” and breaking through several police barricades to reach President Rajapaksa’s house.
Police fired shots in the air and used tear gas to try to prevent angry crowds from overrunning the residence, but were unable to stop some of the crowd from entering.
Live stream footage from inside the building showed hundreds of protesters packing into rooms and corridors, while hundreds also milled around the grounds outside.
Protesters at a different location also managed to enter the president’s office, which has been the focus of demonstrations for months.
According to a hospital spokesperson, at least 33 people were injured, including members of the security forces, and were being treated at the National Hospital of Sri Lanka in Colombo.
Authorities attempted to thwart the demonstration by imposing a curfew on Friday night. However, protesters were unafraid, and the curfew was lifted after civil society organizations and opposition parties strongly opposed it.
Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe has called an emergency meeting of political party leaders in Sri Lanka to discuss the crisis. He also requested that parliament be convened by the Speaker.