COLOMBO
The Maldives on Tuesday (April 15, 2025) introduced a ban on Israeli vacationers to the scenic island nation, reaffirming its “resolute solidarity” with the Palestinian trigger.
President Mohamed Muizzu ratified the Third Amendment to the Maldives Immigration Act, handed by the parliament or People’s Majlis on 15 April 2025, his workplace mentioned. The transfer displays the federal government’s “firm stance in response to the continuing atrocities and ongoing acts of genocide committed by Israel against the Palestinian people”, a press release from his workplace mentioned.
Also learn: As Sri Lanka expresses solidarity with Palestine, Israeli vacationers dominate island’s scenic Arugam Bay
“The Government of Maldives reaffirms its resolute solidarity with the Palestinian cause and its enduring commitment to the promotion and protection of the rights of the Palestinian people. The Maldives continues to advocate for accountability for violations of international law and remains vocal across various international platforms in its condemnation of Israel’s actions,” it additional mentioned.
Israel will not be among the many high ten supply markets of the Indian Ocean archipelago, whose financial system depends closely on tourism. According to information revealed by Maldivian Tourism authorities, the favored vacation spot of pristine seashores has obtained as many as 729,932 vacationers this 12 months, till April 14, 2025, 70 % of whom went to the resorts positioned throughout islands. China is on high, accounting for 11 % of the vacationer arrivals, whereas India is on the sixth place, contributing 5 % of arrivals this 12 months. The ban on Israeli vacationers, introduced on Tuesday, comes into impact instantly, a spokesman on the President’s workplace instructed information company AFP.
With Tuesday’s ratification, which formalises the Muizzu authorities’s earlier pledge to impose a ban on the entry of holiday makers holding Israeli passports, the Maldives joins Bangladesh and Pakistan within the South Asian area in banning Israeli passport holders from getting into their international locations. Recently, Bangladesh additionally reintroduced the “except Israel” inscription on passports debarring its residents from travelling to Israel, amid mounting public anger over Israel’s relentless assaults on the Gaza Strip, claiming over 50,000 lives within the final 18 months.
The arrival of Israeli vacationers has been beneath the highlight in Sri Lanka as nicely, particularly with locals elevating concern over guests working companies illegally round common vacationer websites. Sri Lanka continues to reiterate its “long-standing and unwavering support” for the Palestinian trigger.
Published – April 16, 2025 01:30 am IST
