The resignation of the prime minister automatically means the cabinet stands dissolved.
COLOMBO - Sri Lankan Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa resigned Monday after dozens of people were hospitalised when his supporters armed with sticks and clubs attacked protestors.
The country's largest opposition party had said before the clashes that it would not join any government helmed by a member of the Rajapaksa clan. Officials said the army riot squad was called in to reinforce police. Soldiers have been deployed throughout the crisis to protect deliveries of fuel and other essentials but until now not to prevent clashes.
The supporters then initially pulled down tents of protesters in front of the prime minister's Temple Trees residence and torched anti-government banners and placards. Opposition MP Sajith Premadasa tried to move into the area after the clashes, but he came under attack from a mob and his security staff bundled him into a car and drove off.
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