HARARE, October 14. /TASS/. Madagascar's President Andry Rajoelina has dissolved the National Assembly, the lower house of parliament, Reuters news agency reported quoting a presidential decree published on the official Facebook page of his administration (banned in Russia; owned by Meta Corporation, recognized as extremist in Russia).

The president has fled the country and his whereabouts are currently unknown. The opposition is negotiating with ministry officials to win their support.

The opposition has been trying to gather enough signatures to launch impeachment proceedings against Rajoelina in parliament.

The youth have been protesting in Madagascar since September 25. Initially, the organizers of the riots said they were protesting against the increased interruptions in the supply of electricity and water, but later demanded the resignation of the government and the head of state. On September 29, Rajoelina terminated the powers of the prime minister and the cabinet. He refused to step down and on October 13 said he had moved to a safe place after an attempted assassination.

Edgar Khokhlov, a spokesman for the Russian diplomatic mission in Antananarivo, told TASS that "in general, the situation in the capital of the country is normalizing, the unrest that took place mainly in the city center has stopped.".