U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg speaks during the UN Climate Change Conference (COP26), in Glasgow, Scotland, Britain, November 10, 2021.
U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg speaks during the UN Climate Change Conference (COP26), in Glasgow, Scotland, Britain, November 10, 2021. Reuters / Yves Herman

Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa fled the country early on Wednesday, a government source told Reuters, hours before he was due to resign after widespread protests over his handling of a devastating economic crisis.

The president's departure was first reported by the Associated Press. Rajapaksa, his wife and two bodyguards left aboard a Sri Lankan Air Force plane bound for the city of Male, the capital of the Maldives, the AP report added, citing the official.

The government source said Rajapaksa had left the country but did not give more details.

Rajapaksa was due to resign as president on Wednesday to make way for a unity government, after thousands of protesters stormed his and the prime minister's official residences on Saturday demanding their ouster.

The president has not been seen in public since Friday. Parliament will elect his replacement on July 20.

The Rajapaksa family, including former prime minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, has dominated the politics of the country of 22 million for years and most Sri Lankans blame them for current problems.

The tourism-dependent economy was hammered badly by the COVID-19 pandemic and a fall in remittances from overseas Sri Lankans, while a ban on chemical fertilisers damaged farm output. The ban was later reversed.