- Liverpool boss Slot praises Alexander-Arnold's defensive work
- Barca coach backs Pena but will debate new goalkeeper signing
- UN says tens of thousands flee Lebanon strikes
- Asian stock markets lead rally on China stimulus
- Arteta stands by defensive tactics in fiery Man City clash
- Tropical Storm John hits Mexico's Pacific coast
- Sri Lanka's new leader appoints cabinet ahead of expected snap polls
- Singapore ex-minister convicted in rare graft trial
- UK town catches Subbuteo fever
- France facing 'one of worst deficits' in its history: minister
- China's Olympic champ Zheng embraces big home expectations
- Biden bids farewell to UN, in shadow of Trump
- All Blacks seek to end Wellington jinx, with Cane poised for 100th cap
- Postbank (Постбанк) анулює рахунки українців у Німеччині
- Meryl Streep says a 'squirrel has more rights' than an Afghan girl
- Postbank terminates accounts of Ukrainians in Germany
- Hong Kong, Shanghai lead markets rally after China stimulus
- Dutch paint giant Akzonobel slashes 2,000 jobs worldwide
- Sri Lanka's new leader to call snap parliamentary polls
- In Ukraine's Pokrovsk, some quietly waiting for Russian troops
- Singapore ex-minister pleads guilty in rare graft trial
- Fishy business caught by fraying India-Bangladesh ties
- US Open champion Sabalenka chases year-end number one ranking
- New Zealand scientists discover ghostly 'spookfish'
- Trump slams early voting, even while urging Pennsylvanians to do so
- Singapore ex-minister pleads guilty to bribery in rare graft trial
- Major Hurricane John hits Mexico's Pacific coast
- IMF says ready for talks with Sri Lanka's new leftist government
- Phillies clinch division title, eye top seed
- Bills trample Jaguars, Commanders claw Bengals
- China unveils fresh stimulus to boost ailing economy
- Hong Kong, Shanghai rally on China stimulus on mixed day for markets
- Back to death row? Retrial verdict due in Japan murder saga
- Rare corruption trial of Singapore ex-minister begins
- Ghana a long way off from gender equality despite new law
- China unveils fresh stimulus to boost economy
- Hamas weakened, not crushed a year into war with Israel
- Israeli economy struggles under weight of Gaza war
- Israelis united in trauma, divided by war after October 7
- New York Liberty riding WNBA boom into playoffs
- Union says new Boeing pay offer 'missed the mark'
- Environmental groups urge EU 'high risk' label for Sarawak
- Argentina seeks Maduro's arrest for crimes against humanity
- Morales issues Bolivian president 24-hour ultimatum to shake up cabinet
- Armenia and Azerbaijan see progress, but peace treaty seems distant
- World leaders gather at UN as Mideast tensions explode
- Biden's UN goodbye aims to 'Trump-proof' legacy
- Singapore ex-minister set for high-profile corruption trial
- Man Utd, Spurs eye respite from domestic woes in Europa League
- Guatemala picks Supreme Court judges with focus on anti-graft fight
Fresh protests rock Sri Lanka after police killing
Fresh anti-government protests spread across Sri Lanka Wednesday, a day after police shot dead a demonstrator and triggered international condemnation just as the crisis-hit country appealed for an IMF bailout.
Regular blackouts, acute shortages of food and fuel and record inflation have sparked increasing public discontent in the island, which is dealing with its worst economic downturn since independence in 1948.
The latest wave of demonstrations are the largest so far in the current unrest and again saw protesters blockading key highways, according to Sri Lanka's public order ministry.
"Considerable crowds cut off roads... while there were smaller, but more widespread demonstrations elsewhere," ministry secretary Jagath Alwis said in a statement.
State-run hospitals also saw medical staff stop all work except emergency surgeries to again protest a serious shortage of life-saving medicines.
Wednesday's protests were the latest in weeks of demonstrations giving shape to public anger over chronic shortages and demanding the government's resignation.
A day earlier, a 42-year-old father of two was killed when police dispersed a crowd in the town of Rambukkana with tear gas and live ammunition. Nearly 30 others were wounded in the confrontation.
"I was hit with a baton on my leg and hand," Vasantha Kumara, a chef from the town, told AFP. "I begged the cops not to beat me, but they didn't listen."
"People are angry. We are all poor people fighting for basics."
People in Rambukkana, 95 kilometres (60 miles) east of the capital Colombo, defied an official curfew to again take to the streets in protest a day after the violence.
President Gotabaya Rajapaksa said he was "deeply saddened" by the police shooting and promised to uphold the public's right to peacefully protest against his government.
Sri Lanka's police force "will carry out an impartial and transparent inquiry", he wrote on Twitter.
Police said they were forced to act when the crowd was about to set alight a fuel tanker -- an account rubbished by Sri Lanka's political opposition.
"These people are not suicidal to burn a tanker and get killed in the process," lawmaker Rohini Kumari Wijerathna said in parliament.
- International concern -
Tuesday's incident was the first fatal clash since widespread anti-government protests began this month.
At least 29 people, including 11 police officers, were wounded in Rambukkana, according to official figures.
Colombo-based diplomats have expressed concern over the police shooting.
"A full, transparent investigation is essential and the people's right to peaceful protest must be upheld," US ambassador Julie Chung said.
British High Commissioner Sarah Hulton condemned the violence and called for "restraint".
- IMF talks -
Sri Lanka opened talks with the International Monetary Fund in Washington this week after announcing an unprecedented default on the country's $51 billion foreign debt.
The IMF said it had asked Sri Lanka to restructure its borrowings before the lender finalises a bailout programme.
Talks with Sri Lanka were still at an "early stage", the IMF said.
Sri Lanka's economic collapse began to be felt after the coronavirus pandemic torpedoed vital revenue from tourism and remittances.
The country is short of dollars to finance essentials, including medicines. Runaway inflation has worsened hardships.
A large crowd has been camped outside President Rajapaksa's seafront office in Colombo since April 9, demanding he steps down.
Rajapaksa has acknowledged public anger over the ruling family's mismanagement and appointed a new cabinet to navigate the country out of the crisis, but has refused to resign.
J.Horn--BTB