Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who fled the country to Singapore due to mass protests, sent a letter of resignation to the speaker of the country's parliament by email on July 14. It is reported by Reuters, citing sources.

The application will become effective on Friday, July 15, after it passes due diligence.

A spokesman for the Speaker of Parliament said Rajapaksa submitted his resignation on Thursday, hours after fleeing to Singapore. The agency clarifies that the statement caused jubilation in Colombo, where protesters gathered outside the presidential secretariat building, violating the curfew. The crowd set off firecrackers, shouted slogans and danced.

Protests in Sri Lanka began due to the economic crisis that began in April. Experts call it the largest since 1948, when the country gained independence from Great Britain. Now there is no food, medicine and fuel on the island. According to the UN, four out of five people on the island skip meals due to poverty. Inflation in Sri Lanka reached 54.6%, external debt - $51 billion.

According to Reuters, on July 13, Rajapaksa fled from Sri Lanka to the Maldives. This happened a few hours before he was due to announce his resignation. The president's whereabouts have been unknown since Saturday, after a crowd of protesters broke into his palace. Also on 13 July, Prime Minister Ranil Wickramasinghe declared a state of emergency and a curfew on the island. The reason for this was hundreds of protesters who surrounded his office in Colombo and demand his resignation.