Sri Lanka lifts curfew for Buddhist festival

Sri Lanka lifted the ongoing curfew for the Buddhist festival of Vesak. The celebrations will be muted as the island weathers a worsening economic crisis. A nationwide stay-home order has been in place for most of the week after violence broke out during peaceful protests that left at least nine people dead. Many public and private buildings were flying the multi-coloured Buddhist flag, while residents visited temples dressed in all-white for Sunday's festival, which commemorates the birth, enlightenment, and death of the Buddha.

 Newly appointed Sri Lankan prime minister Ranil Wickremesinghe has  invited opposition leader Sajith Premadasa and his party to form a non-partisan government. President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has also called on lawmakers to work together on a solution to the worsening crisis. The island nation of 22 million has been witnessing violence and protests even after Mahinda Rajapaksa stepped down from the prime ministerial position. Rajapaksa swore in four cabinet ministers on Saturday in an effort to ensure stability until a full cabinet is formed in the country.