- Leading climate activist released from Vietnam jail
- Ethiopians struggle with bitter pill of currency reform
- Sri Lanka votes in first poll since economic collapse
- Feminist author warns of abortion disaster if Trump wins US election
- US city of Flint still reeling from water crisis, 10 years on
- Arsenal's mean defence faces acid test to shut out Man City again
- Late surge lifts Thailand's Jeeno to LPGA Queen City lead
- DeChambeau says PGA's Ryder Cup decision 'just the start'
- Alcaraz defeated on Laver Cup debut
- Postecoglou embraces 'struggle' to make Spurs a success
- Nice hand 'ashamed' Saint-Etienne 8-0 Ligue 1 mauling
- Boeing CEO says ending strike 'a top priority'
- Stock markets mostly fall after Fed-fueled rally
- Harris slams Trump for hypocrisy on abortion as US starts voting
- Academy to host first overseas ceremony to honor young filmmakers
- No doctor necessary: US okays nasal spray flu vaccine for self-use
- Gurbaz, birthday boy Rashid lead Afghanistan to 177-run rout of South Africa
- Former delivery man Baldwin leads star names at PGA Championship
- Trump shooting: Secret Service admits complacency
- Can an ambitious Milei make Argentina an AI giant?
- Haiti, its suffering growing, in 'race against time': UN expert
- Ibrahim Aqil, the Hezbollah elite unit commander wanted by the US
- Chinese forward Cui signs NBA contract with Brooklyn Nets
- US Fed dissenter calls for 'measured' pace of rate cuts
- Guardiola tells players to lead change over workload as Kompany demands cap on games
- Norway limits wild salmon fishing as stocks hit new lows
- Top Hezbollah commander killed in Israeli strike on Beirut
- Rotterdam fatal knife attacker suspected of 'terrorist motive'
- First early votes cast in knife-edge US presidential election
- Top-ranked Swiatek out of Beijing due to 'personal matters'
- Hard-right Reform UK looks to the future after vote success
- Embiid agrees to NBA contract extension with 76ers
- Joshua aims to complete road to redemption in Dubois bout
- World champion Bagnaia sets pace with lap record at Misano
- Biden says 'working' to get people back to homes on Israel-Lebanon border
- Pope criticises Argentina's crackdown on protesters
- Court limits screenings of videos in France mass rape case
- Gurbaz century takes Afghanistan to 311-4 in 2nd ODI
- Central banks face 'difficult balancing act': IMF chief
- McLaren's Norris sets Singapore pace as struggling Verstappen 15th
- Guardiola tells players to lead change over workload fears
- Paris Olympics sports equipment moves to new homes
- 'Happy' Kinghorn relishing life at Toulouse
- Norris sets Singapore pace as Verstappen only 15th
- 8 dead in Israeli strike, source says Hezbollah commander killed
- Germany to bid to host women's Euro 2029
- Portugal brings deadly forest fires under control
- Postecoglou defends Solanke after slow start to Spurs career
- US nuclear plant Three Mile Island to reopen to power Microsoft
- Arteta urges Arsenal to take next step in Man City showdown
Sri Lanka sacks energy minister as economic crisis deepens
Sri Lanka's president sacked his energy minister on Thursday as fuel shortages left the near-bankrupt island facing its worst blackouts in 26 years and the nation's buses largely sidelined.
Udaya Gammanpila was booted from the cabinet a day after publicly criticising the government's monetary policy, saying it had worsened the dollar shortage that has slammed oil imports.
Another cabinet member who had accused Finance Minister Basil Rajapaksa, a younger brother of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, of mismanagement was also sacked.
"The president used his executive powers to remove Industries Minister Wimal Weerawansa and Energy Minister Udaya Gammanpila with effect from today," presidential spokesman Kingsly Rathnayaka said.
No reason was given for the summary dismissals, but official sources said the president was livid over their scathing attacks on the government's handling of the worsening economic crisis.
Earlier in the day, the International Monetary Fund had warned the country's foreign debt was "unsustainable", and called for devaluation and higher taxes to revive the economy.
Since Wednesday, Sri Lankans have been subject to nationwide power cuts of seven-and-a-half hours a day, the worst since 1996, after thermal power stations ran out of fuel.
Public transport has also been crippled, with many fuel retailers out of diesel and some bus drivers reporting queueing for up to seven hours to top up.
Sri Lanka is in the grip of a severe foreign exchange shortage, with the country's external reserves falling to $2.3 billion in January, down 25 percent from the previous month.
A wide-ranging import ban imposed in March 2020 to save foreign exchange has led to shortages of essentials, including food, medicines and industrial raw materials.
International rating agencies have downgraded Sri Lanka, saying there were doubts if the South Asian nation can service its $51 billion foreign debt. Colombo has insisted it will honour its obligations.
M.Furrer--BTB