Authorities in Sri Lanka removed the nationwide curfew for 12 hours on Saturday amid fresh signs of political stability, as new prime minister Ranil Wickremesinghe took charge of the administration.

The curfew was eased between 6am and 6pm on Saturday. Sri Lanka, which has been in the grip of a severe economic and political crisis, was placed under a 24-hour curfew last Monday after peaceful protests, which had been taking place for weeks over the government’s failure to prevent the crisis, turned violent.

The lockdown across the country was eased briefly on Thursday and Friday to allow people to purchase essential goods.