Supporting Palestinians, Maldives Bans Israeli Citizens from Entering Its Territory

Illustration of the resort in the Maldives. (Wikimedia Commons/john mchugh)

JAKARTA - The Maldives on Tuesday announced a ban on Israelis entering the popular tourist island region, in a "firm show of solidarity" with the Palestinian people.

Maldivian President Mohamed Muizzu ratified the law immediately after it was approved by Parliament on Tuesday.

"The ratification reflects the government's firm stance in response to the ongoing atrocities and acts of genocide committed by Israel against the Palestinian people," the president's office said in a statement, reported by Arab News from AFP on April 15.

"The Maldives reiterates its firm solidarity with the Palestinian cause," the statement said.

The ban will be implemented immediately, a spokesman for President Muizzu's office said.

The Maldives lifted a previous ban on Israeli tourists in the early 1990s and briefly restored ties in 2010.

Opposition parties and government allies in the Maldives have been pressuring President Muizzu to ban Israelis as a statement of opposition to the Gaza war.

Israel's Foreign Ministry last year urged its citizens to avoid traveling to the Maldives.

The Maldives, an Islamic Republic of 1,192 strategically located coral islands, is renowned for its secluded white-sand beaches, shallow turquoise lagoons and Robinson Crusoe-style getaways.

Official data shows some 59 Israeli tourists visited the island nation in February, among 214,000 other foreign arrivals.

The latest conflict in Gaza broke out on October 7, 2023, when the Palestinian militant group led by Hamas attacked southern Israel, leaving around 1,200 people dead and 250 others taken hostage, according to Israeli figures, as quoted by Reuters.

Israel responded by carrying out a blockade, airstrikes, and a military campaign in the Gaza area.

Local health authorities on Tuesday confirmed that the Palestinian death toll had reached 51,000, local health authorities said Tuesday, while the number of injured reached 116,343 people, mostly women and children, quoted by WAFA.