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| Sri Lanka military chief resigns | |
| (10 minutes later) | |
| Sri Lanka's armed forces chief General Sarath Fonseka has resigned from his post just months after helping secure the defeat of Tamil Tiger rebels. | |
| Gen Fonseka is reportedly considering challenging President Mahinda Rajapaksa in an election to be held before April. He is due to make a speech shortly. | Gen Fonseka is reportedly considering challenging President Mahinda Rajapaksa in an election to be held before April. He is due to make a speech shortly. |
| The resignation was swiftly accepted by the president, a political source told the BBC on condition of anonymity. | The resignation was swiftly accepted by the president, a political source told the BBC on condition of anonymity. |
| Speculation of a rift between the two men has been rife in recent months. | Speculation of a rift between the two men has been rife in recent months. |
| The BBC's Charles Haviland in Colombo says the general has been in talks with Sri Lanka's opposition coalition about the possibility of his running for president against Mr Rajapaksa. | |
| Opposition politicians say that resigning from his post as army chief would clear the way for him to stand as a presidential candidate. | |
| But in an interview with BBC Sinhala, Gen Fonseka would not be drawn on reports he might enter the presidential race. | |
| "I am retiring. That's all I can say at the moment," he said. | |
| Two months after leading the army to victory in the civil war, Gen Fonseka was promoted from army chief to armed forces chief, a new post widely viewed as ceremonial. | |
| He was widely reported to be unhappy at this. |