Three arrested in counter-terrorism operation
Masked police officers and soldiers were deployed across the capital.
11 Mar, 8:00 AM
Three people have been arrested in a joint operation conducted by the police and military in the Greater Malé Region.
The operation “related to national security” was based on intelligence information and searches of homes and other places connected to the suspects were underway, the police said in a brief statement released at 2:15am on Tuesday.
It came after an announcement made earlier was removed from social media. The previous post was deleted to “verify sensitive information,” the police told the media.
The operation was launched close to midnight on Monday. A large number of masked police officers and soldiers in tactical gear were deployed across the capital.
According to media reports, one of the suspects was the driver of a lorry stopped near the Republic Square. The police later searched his home in his presence.
The man was accused of plotting terrorist attacks in Malé and nearby islands, Dhiyares reported, citing the arrest warrant for the lorry driver.
Journalists at the scene saw soldiers remove items from a house in Shabnam Magu. Adhadhu posted a video of an arrest following a raid on a house called Preside. Two other residences, a garage and a Vinares apartment in Hulhumalé were reportedly searched by police officers wearing balaclavas. Several vehicles were also inspected.
This was the first major counter-terrorism operation conducted since President Dr Mohamed Muizzu assumed office in November 2023.
But some segments of the public and opposition figures were skeptical, accusing the government of seeking a diversion or pretext to declare a state of emergency.
Former defence minister Mariya Didi characterised the pre-dawn raids as the sequel of a previous “intelligence operation film,” referring to the discovery of a pistol in the home of former defence minister Mohamed Nazim in January 2015, the seizure of a weapons cache submerged near an uninhabited island in October 2015, and bomb threats in Malé that preceded a state of emergency in November 2015.
“People say the actors and producers of the previous film are still there as senior officials of the government and security forces!” she tweeted.