Rajapaksa, who is due to officially resign today after months of demonstrations calling for him to step down, was reportedly trying to escape to Dubai on Monday night.
Officials said immigration staff prevented the president from going to the VIP area of Colombo airport to stamp his passport and that he would not go through ordinary queues for fear of being mobbed by the public.
Rajapaksa reportedly missed four flights to the United Arab Emirates, and he, his wife and a dozen other relatives and close aides spent the night at a nearby military base.
It appeared that the president had tried to follow several avenues of escape in recent days but that all proved futile.
The Indian government reportedly refused permission for a Sri Lankan military plane, carrying the president, to land at an Indian civilian airport, while the US embassy refused to grant him a visitor visa, according to US embassy sources who spoke to local media.
Rajapaksa, who lived in the US for years and has a son and grandchild there, gave up his dual US citizenship to run for president, which means he is now ineligible for a visitor visa.
この記事は The Guardian の July 13, 2022 版に掲載されています。
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この記事は The Guardian の July 13, 2022 版に掲載されています。
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