Maldives to ban Israelis from entering the country amid Gaza genocide

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: News Websites
2 Jun 2024 21:36
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As public outrage engulfs the Maldives due to the Israeli genocide in Gaza, the government has decided to ban Israeli entries into the country.

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Maldives President Mohamed Muizzu speaks during a plenary session at the COP28 U.N. Climate Summit, Dec. 1, 2023, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (AP)

The Maldives plans to ban Israelis from the country amid public outrage it has expressed due to the Israeli occupation's genocide in Gaza, the Associated Press reported.

The presidential office announced on Sunday that country laws will be amended to ban people holding Israeli passports from entering the archipelago, with a special committee being formed to oversee the process.

Moreover, President Mohamed Muizu will be appointing a special envoy to determine Palestinian needs and consequently establish a fundraiser to meet them.

Last year, 11,000 Israelis traveled to the Maldives, making up 0.6% of the country's tourists.

The decision was first motioned in November 2023, when Maldives MP Mohamed Nasheed Abdulla submitted a proposal to amend the Immigration Act to ban those carrying Israeli passports from entering the country.

Nasheed Abdulla stated that the objective of the bill is to pressure and place sanctions on "Israel" via a travel ban, in light of the genocide being committed against the people of Gaza and Palestine.

Abdulla also added that the Maldives must follow through with the ban on Israeli arrivals as the nations of the Organization for Islamic Corporation (OIC), of which the Maldives is a member, have placed a travel ban as well for the same reason.

Forms of solidarity with Palestine

Back in January 2022, Israeli diplomatic sources claimed that the Maldives were reestablishing ties to normalize diplomatic relations with "Israel", which were severed in 1974. After the 2014 war on Gaza, the Maldives terminated all ties with the occupation and prohibited all Israeli imports.

Another form of protest, widely becoming more recognized as a form of resistance against "Israel's" genocide in Gaza, is the boycott of Israeli products and brands supporting the Occupation - such as Starbucks and McDonald's, among others.

Part of the boycott is not only product-linked. Ambassadors to "Israel" have also been recalled and expelled by multiple nations, like Turkey and Jordan. Saudi Arabia announced a halt in normalization talks, while Honduras, Colombia, and Chile withdrew their ambassadors as well.

Meanwhile, Bolivia severed diplomatic ties with "Israel" over the ongoing war crimes in Gaza.