Skip to content

A digest of news and opinion from the Maldives.

featured

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan arrives to hold a press conference following the Extraordinary Summit of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) on last week's US recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital, on December 13, 2017, in Istanbul. Islamic leaders on December 13 urged the world to recognise occupied East Jerusalem as the capital of Palestine, as Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas warned the United States no longer had any role to play in the peace process. / AFP PHOTO / YASIN AKGUL

Israel’s occupation of Jerusalem violates international law: Maldives

2 min read

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan arrives to hold a press conference following the Extraordinary Summit of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) on last week’s US recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, on December 13, 2017, in Istanbul. Islamic leaders on December 13 urged the world to recognise occupied East Jerusalem as the capital of […]

expat construction workers

Kidnapped Bangladeshi national in Maldives saved, two arrested

3 min read

Expatriate workers at work in a construction site. PHOTO: NISHAN ALI/MIHAARU Police have rescued a Bangladeshi national that was kidnapped in the capital Male last week and arrested two other Bangladeshi men in connection with the crime. Maldives Police Service revealed Wednesday that the kidnapping was reported on Monday last week, but did not disclose further […]

expat construction workers

Police probe kidnapping of a Bangladeshi national

1 min read

Expatriate workers at work in a construction site. PHOTO: NISHAN ALI/MIHAARU Police revealed Wednesday that they are investigating a case of a Bangladeshi national who was kidnapped in the Maldives. According to Maldives Police Service, the kidnapping was reported last Monday and two Bangladeshi nationals have been arrested in connection to the case since then. […]

embassy

Maldives chairs Colombo Plan Council for third time

1 min read

Maldivian ambassador Mohamed Hussain Shareef (L) chairs the 293rd meeting of the Colombo Plan Council in Sri Lanka. PHOTO/EMBASSY OF MALDIVES The Maldives on Tuesday was appointed chair of the Colombo Plan Council for the third time. Colombo Plan is an international organization founded in 1950, which works to establish bilateral relations to provide foreign […]

Henveiru North MP Abdulla Shahid waves before his hearing at the Criminal Court. PHOTO: NISHAN ALI/MIHAARU

Main opposition demands transparency in China pacts

2 min read

Henveiru North MP Abdulla Shahid waves before his hearing at the Criminal Court. PHOTO: NISHAN ALI/MIHAARU Member of main opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) and lawmaker of Henveiru North constituency, Abdulla Shahid, called on the government to disclose details of the agreements recently signed between the Maldives and China. The governments of the two countries […]

Concerns over councils banned from meeting foreign diplomats sans permission

Concerns over councils banned from meeting foreign diplomats sans permission

2 min read

British Ambassador James Dauris pictured riding a motorbike with some local councillors during his visit to GDh Thinadhoo. PHOTO/JAMES DAURIS TWITTER The Local Government Authority (LGA)’s decision to ban local councils from meeting with foreign diplomats and organisations without special permission from the government has sparked concerns. The parent body of councils had issued the […]

Republic Square in the capital Male during Maldives' 50th Independence Day celebrations --

MVR 66 million spent illegally on 50th Independence Day celebrations, audit report reveals

2 min read

Republic Square in the capital Male during Maldives’ 50th Independence Day celebrations — The state had illegally spent over MVR 66 million for Maldives’ 50th Independence Day celebrations, the Ministry of Home Affairs’ audit report for 2015 has revealed. According to the report that was published by Auditor General Hassan Ziyath on Sunday, the normal […]

President Abdulla Yameen (R-3) pictured at the 18th SAARC Summit 2014 held in Nepal.

Maldives pres calls for South Asia unity despite differences

2 min read

President Abdulla Yameen (R-3) pictured at the 18th SAARC Summit 2014 held in Nepal. President Abdulla Yameen has called on South Asia to remain united and not let differences in belief and outlook obstruct regional efforts to accomplish common goals. In a message to mark the 33rd SAARC Charter Day, Yameen noted that the region of […]

Are Rising Seas, Coastal Erosion & Powerful Storms a Wave of the Future for Small Island Nations?

Are Rising Seas, Coastal Erosion & Powerful Storms a Wave of the Future for Small Island Nations?

7 min read

The Maldives. Credit: UNDP UNITED NATIONS, Dec 8 2017 (IPS) – The 44-member Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS) represents some of the world’s most vulnerable island nations fighting a virtually losing battle against rising sea levels triggered by global warming and climate change. A negotiating voice of Small Island Developing States (SIDS), AOSIS has […]