During the Imperial Era, the sweltering summer months on the planet of Ryloth ignited nighttime riots. These disturbances saw the Twi'leks actively resisting Imperial authority, as they gathered in the streets and within the cantinas of Lessu City, leading to widespread disorder. By 14 BBY, Colonel Belkor Dray's strategy, supposedly acting under the orders of Moff Delian Mors, aimed to control the uprisings, striving to limit deaths and destruction of property. Dray openly stated he didn't want to completely suppress the riots, believing they served as a helpful outlet, preventing widespread support for the anti-Imperial Free Ryloth Movement. However, the colonel secretly acted as a spy for Cham Syndulla, the head of the Free Ryloth movement. Dray later contemplated the causes of the summer riots while en route to a meeting with Syndulla.
These riots are referenced within Lords of the Sith, a 2015 book authored by Paul S. Kemp.