MALE – The government of Maldives has imposed travel ban on individuals holding Israeli passport in response to the ongoing violence in Palestine.
The legislation in this regard was approved by President Mohamed Muizzu on Tuesday after the parliament suggested such a move unanimously.
The fresh policy means that those with Israeli passports would not be allowed to enter Maldives though dual nationality holders can enter Maldives using travel document issued by the country other than Israel.
The President’s office said in a statement that the legislation reflects the nation’s condemnation of what it refers to as Israel’s ‘ongoing atrocities’ in Gaza.
It bears mentioning that the proposal to impose travel ban on Israel has been in the discussion for around a year and fresh wave of violence in Gaza compounded by local pressure expedited the process.
As far as the statistics are concerned, over 11,000 Israelis visited Maldives in 2023, though the numbers nosedived in 2024 in the aftermath of the violence that intensified in Gaza which has left over 50,000 including children martyred in the country.
As the ban by Maldives came into place, Israel’s Foreign Ministry has advised its citizens to avoid travel to the country.
The ongoing atrocities in Palestine by the Israeli authorities is prompting Muslim countries to reconsider their policy regarding Israel. Recently, Bangladesh re-amended its passport to mark special inscription on the travel document which says that the passport is valid for travel to countries except Israel.
Pakistan’s passport already bars travel to Israel as the passport of the country specifically mentions the statement that the travel document can be used to travel to any country except Israel.
