Sri Lanka begins choosing leader to replace exiled former president Rajapaksa

Sri Lankan legislators have met to begin choosing a new leader to serve the rest of the term abandoned by the president who fled abroad and resigned after mass protests over the country’s economic collapse.

Mahinda Rajapaksa quit his role on Thursday evening after fleeing to Singapore, ending the rule of a family that wielded power for nearly 20 years.

Sri Lanka’s prime minister, Ranil Wickremesinghe, has been sworn in as acting president until a successor is elected.

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