Assassination plot led to Sri Lankan PM being fired

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka — Sri Lanka’s president said Sunday that the main reason he decided to sack his prime minister was the alleged involvement of a Cabinet minister in a plot to assassinate him.

In a televised address to the nation, President Maithripala Sirisena said a person questioned by investigators had revealed the name of a minister in an alleged plot to assassinate him and a former defense secretary.

He said the only choice for him under the circumstances was to dismiss Ranil Wickremesinghe and invite his former nemesis and ex-strongman Mahinda Rajapaksa to take over as prime minister.

“This information (received by investigators) contains a number of details hitherto hidden to the people,” Sirisena said. He did not reveal the name of the minister.