Sri Lanka's new president names brother Mahinda as PM

Sri Lanka's new President Gotabaya Rajapaksa will swear in his elder brother Mahinda -- a former president himself -- as prime minister, a spokesman told AFP Wednesday.

The brothers are credited with brutally crushing the Tamil Tigers a decade ago to end Sri Lanka's civil war, with the security services they controlled accused of war crimes and multiple human rights abuses.

Government spokesman Vijayananda Herath said Mahinda Rajapaksa will assume duties as premier soon after incumbent Ranil Wickremesinghe steps down on Thursday morning.