Thousands of protesters have been demanding the PM and president quit over the country's economic crisis.
Similar scenes could be witnessed at the prime minister's house.Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said he was willing to quit to ensure the safety of civilians.
But soon after his announcement videos started circulating of his house up in flames. The prime minister lives with his family in a private home, known as Fifth Lane. He uses his official residence, called Temple Trees, for official business only. One protester, Fiona Sirmana, who was at the protest at the president's house, said it was time "to get rid of the president and the prime minister and to have a new era for Sri Lanka".
"I feel very, very sad that they didn't go earlier because had they gone earlier there wouldn't have been any destruction," she said.: It won independence from British rule in 1948. Three ethnic groups - Sinhalese, Tamil and Muslim - make up 99% of the country's 22 million population.: Mahinda Rajapaksa became a hero among the majority Sinhalese in 2009 when his government defeated Tamil separatist rebels after years of bitter and bloody civil war.
Last week, the authorities suspended sales of petrol and diesel for non-essential vehicles in an attempt to preserve the country's dwindling fuel stocks.
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