Sri Lanka Unrest Explained

Sri Lanka Unrest Explained

Sri Lanka’s sovereign-debt crisis has plunged the economy into a crisis and sparked months of political turmoil and public unrest.

This month's antigovernment demonstrations took a dramatic turn on July 9 when police were unable to hold back large crowds of protesters at the official residences of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe.

On-the-ground footage obtained by Storyful shows protestors storming and occupying the residences.

Both leaders said they would resign but what comes next?

Storyful’s explainer breaks down the story into bite-size pieces.

Reporting by Stephanie Hunt.