Colombo, Sri Lanka

In a dramatic escalation of the ongoing economic crisis in Sri Lanka, a top defence source who spoke on condition of anonymity to AFP has confirmed that Gotabaya Rajapaksa, the embattled president of the country, has fled his official residence in the capital on Saturday before protestors calling for his resignation stormed the compound. The insider claimed that the president was "escorted to safety," and that troops had fired shots into the air to keep mobs of enraged people from storming the President's Palace. In one of the largest anti-government demonstrations in the troubled country this year, tens of thousands of protesters broke through police barricades to attack the president's official residence.

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The protesters poured into Colombo's government district, yelling anti-presidential chants and tearing down multiple police barricades to get to Rajapaksa's home, reports Reuters citing a witness present at the scene. The witness claimed that despite police shooting rounds in the air, the enraged mob continued to surround the presidential palace.

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According to a video from the local TV news NewsFirst channel, several demonstrators burst into the president's mansion while brandishing helmets and Sri Lankan flags.

Also read | Sri Lanka in crisis: Nearly 6 million experience food insecurity as inflation rises

The 22 million-population island is experiencing the biggest financial instability in seven decades as a result of a severe foreign exchange shortage that has restricted imports of fuel, food, and medicine.

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President Gotabaya and the Rajapaksa clan is has been blamed for the nation's collapse. Since March, mostly peaceful demonstrations have called for his resignation.

However, since the cash-strapped nation ceased receiving fuel shipments, forcing school closures and rationing of gasoline and diesel for basic services, discontent has gotten worse.

(With inputs from agencies)

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