Sri Lanka: Gunmen open fire on convoy carrying voters, no casualties
The gunmen opened fire on two buses and also pelted stones, however, no casualties have been reported yet, a police official said.
Gunmen opened fire on a convoy of buses near Sri Lanka's Colombo hours before the presidential polls were to commence on Saturday. The buses were carrying people from the minority community.
As per initial reports, no casualties have been reported yet and the entire area has been cordoned off.
According to police, the gunmen in order to block the traffic had burnt tyres on the road to intensify attack on a convoy of more than 100 vehicles.
The gunmen opened fire on two buses and also pelted stones, however, no casualties have been reported yet, a police official said.
The security teams rushed to the spot area and escorted buses to a safer place so that people can cast their vote.
The voting in a tightly fought presidential election where former strongman Mahinda Rajapaksa's family is seeking a return to power after five years has commenced.
Polling booths opened across the country at 7 am and voting would continue for 10 hours under tight security provided by 85,000 police, a Sri Lankan election commission official said.
More details awaited...