News website hacked after repeated threats to journalists

Hassan Zaheen, chief editor, told The Maldives Independent that the site was hacked last week and that threatening phone calls often came from suspects acquitted by the criminal court. Reporters have been receiving threats for more than two months now. 

Those behind the threatening calls demanded the removal of articles on corruption of judges and news items critical of the government, he said, noting that the calls came from the same number.

“Our website went down last week after we wrote about the beginning of a presidential impeachment, three hours after we had received a phone call from abroad asking that we either remove the article or our website will be attacked. But because we publish all news only after confirmation from credible sources, we did not remove it,” Zaheen said.