Sri Lanka’s president appoints 17 new ministers after weeks of protests

Sri Lankans queue up to buy fuel (Eranga Jayawardena/AP)

Sri Lanka’s president has appointed 17 new Cabinet ministers as he and his powerful family seek to resolve a political crisis resulting from the country’s dire economic state.

The appointments follow weeks of protests over fuel and food shortages and demands that President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and his government resign.