The Maldives Parliament has officially approved an amendment to the Immigration Act that bans the entry of travelers using Israeli passports. The decision comes in response to Israel’s ongoing actions in Palestine, which the Maldives has condemned. The amendment was initially proposed on May 29, 2023, by opposition MDP MP Meekail Ahmed Naseem and, after being stalled for over 300 days, it was finally reviewed and cleared by the Security Services Committee before being unanimously passed in Parliament.
However, key modifications were made to the bill before approval. A significant change was the removal of a clause that would have barred all Israeli passport holders, including dual citizens, from entering the country. Instead, the new version only bans individuals traveling specifically on Israeli passports. Maldives Immigration advised that this was the only practical and enforceable way to implement the law, as tracking dual citizens traveling on non-Israeli passports would be challenging.
Despite objections from the MDP over the changes, they supported the final version of the bill. The Maldives government continues to urge the international community to take action against the violence in Palestine. In line with the parliamentary move, the Maldives cabinet had earlier also decided to ban Israeli passport holders from entering the country, demonstrating the nation’s strong stance against what it sees as a humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
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