Sri Lanka's former president Ranil Wickremesinghe arrested

Former Sri Lankan president Ranil Wickremesinghe was arrested on Aug 22, making him the most senior opposition figure to be detained under an anti-corruption crackdown by the new leftist government.

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Sri Lanka's anti-graft units have led the crackdown since President Anura Kumara Dissanayake came to power in September on a promise to fight corruption.

Mr Wickremesinghe, 76, who lost the last election to Mr Dissanayake, was taken into custody after being questioned about a September 2023 visit to London to attend a ceremony for his wife at a British university while he was head of state, the officer said.

"We are producing him before the Colombo Fort magistrate," the officer said, adding that they were pressing charges for using state resources for personal purposes.

Mr Wickremesinghe stopped in London in 2023 on his way back from Havana, where he attended a Group of 77 summit.

His office had previously denied that he abused his position to visit London.

Three of his then senior aides were questioned in August by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID).