Ousted strongman president Gotabaya Rajapaksa set for return to Sri Lanka

Rajapaksa fled in July after protesters stormed the presidential palace

Gotabaya Rajapaksa is poised to return to Sri Lanka, nearly two months after the ousted president fled the cash-strapped nation following an anti-government uprising and full-scale occupation of his home by protesters.

Mr Rajapaksa, 73, who is currently in Thailand, is expected to return to Colombo on Saturday, a source close to him told the Daily Mirror newspaper.

In another boost to the Rajapaksa family, the former president’s brother Basil, who was serving as the country’s finance minister when the crisis occurred, has been given permission to travel overseas up to 15 January next year by the country’s Supreme Court.