People in Sri Lankan capital Colombo, suffering for weeks under a terrible economic crisis, erupted in protest late this evening. More than 500 people held a protest march in Sri Lanka’s Colombo late on Wednesday evening and clashed with the police. Gathered outside the house of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, the protesters waved posters and shouted slogans.

The trouble started when the police attempted to disperse them.

The mob threw bottles and stones at the police and the crowd could be controlled only with batons and water cannons.

There has been a critical rise in the costs of food and essential items, shortage of fuel and gas, as the country grappled with the worst economic downturn since its independence.

This evening, diesel was no longer available, leaving the country’s 22 million people in power blackouts and keeping transport off the roads.