Sri Lankan police arrest 664 for violating curfew

Colombo, April 3 Sri Lankan police arrested 664 people in the Western Province for violating the curfew currently in effect, Senior Superintendent of Police Nihal Thalduwa said on Sunday.

Thalduwa said the arrests were made between Saturday 10 p.m. and Sunday 6 a.m., reports Xinhua news agency.

In the wake of mass protests planned for Sunday, the government imposed a 36-hour nationwide curfew from 6.00 p.m. Saturday until 6.00 a.m. on Monday, in addition to a state of emergency declared by President Gotabaya Rajapaksa.

A few hours after declaring the curfew, the President also issued a gazette, prohibiting people from public roads, parks, recreation or other grounds, railways, seashores and other such public places during the curfew period.

The Sri Lankan government on Sunday also blocked commonly used social media platforms Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and messaging platforms WhatsApp and Viber.

The protests against the ongoing economic crisis in the island nation which has led to a severe shortage of fuel, LPG, electricity, food, as well as medicines, were planned through social media platforms.

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