Sri Lankan President to step down on July 13

The Sri Lankan Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena on Saturday, July 9, announced President Gotabaya Rajapaksa will be stepping down from presidency on July 13, Wednesday.

The Speaker had further urged the entire country to remain peaceful to maintain a peaceful transition.

Rajapaksa, who had been receiving public backlash for apparent "mis-governance" had attempted to earlier, side-step public outcry for his immediate resignation.

The president had appointed Ranil Wickremenshinghe as the the country's Prime Minister in a bid to avert heat attracted on him.

Earlier on Saturday, it was reported that the President fled his official residence in Colombo shortly after protesters, angered by the unprecedented economic crisis overran the compound and stormed his nearby office.

Thousands of protesters had amassed on the streets around Gotabaya's residence, demanding for him to step down.

While the authorities attempted to quell the angry crowds by shots fired into the air and tear gas, the efforts met with failure as the protesters managed to storm into the presidential palace.

Live broadcasts and streams of the incident had shown several protesters walking through the rooms of the presidential palace, with some of them jumping into the compound's pool.

"The president was escorted to safety", a top defense source told AFP, adding "He is still the president, he is being protected by a military unit."

The island country has suffered through months of fuel and food shortages, lengthy blackouts and staggering inflation which had risen up by 70 percent.

The government has defaulted on its USD51 billion external debt and is seeking provisions from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

The Sri Lanka Parliament Speaker had requested protesters to return home and not indulge in violence.

Earlier on Saturday evening, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe had also offered to resign from his position in a bid to curb the growing civil unrest in the island nation.

It was reported that dozens including members of the security force were injured in the clashes throughout the day.