Ranil Wickremesinghe appointed Sri Lanka's new Prime Minister

Sri Lanka's veteran political leader Ranil Wickremesinghe has been appointed the next Prime Minister of the crisis-hit island nation by President Gotabaya Rajapaksa. The 73-year-old has taken the oath of office according to the media office of the President, who in an address to the nation yesterday had declared that a Prime Minister and his cabinet will be put in place this week.

Sri Lanka, already struggling with a hard-hitting economic crisis, was plunged into chaos on Monday as Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa stepped down from his post, nulling the elected government. In his address, President Rajapaksa said to "control the current situation, and prevent the country from heading towards anarchy", he would appoint a Prime Minister and Cabinet "that can command a majority in Parliament and can gain the confidence of the people of the country".