The Maldives embassy in Sri Lanka urged hundreds of Maldivians living in the country to take precautions and follow guidance from local authorities, as Cyclone Ditwah devastated the country, with at least 153 people reported dead and 191 missing. Telecom providers Ooredoo and Dhiraagu enabled free calls for Maldivians to contact friends and family. Meanwhile, hundreds of Maldivians were stranded at Bandaranaike International Airport on Saturday due to flight delays and cancellations. The embassy advised travellers to contact its hotline and to check updated airline information before flying from Maldives.
The Maldives Met Office offered an update on Cyclone Ditwah on Saturday noon, saying it was located 875 km northeast of Haa Alif Kelaa moving north-northwest. The Met warned Ditwah could bring scattered showers and thunderstorms to central and southern regions of the Maldives over the next 24 hours.
The Maldives Foreign Ministry said it will donate US$50,000 and 25,000 cans of tuna as a modest gesture of solidarity with “close neighbour and friendly people” of Sri Lanka.
A national council meeting of the opposition MDP on Friday night ended without appointing an interim chairperson, after members walked out when former Dhidhoo MP Abdulla Waheed secured 47 of 96 votes. The council chair refused to hold a vote for former speaker Mohamed Aslam, stating he was ineligible as he is not a sitting council member. The chair closed the meeting without calling a vote for MP Abdul Gafoor Moosa, amid continued disagreements and walk outs.
MDP MP Meekail Naseem launched a bid to run in internal party elections to elect a new chairperson, asking for support from members to give leadership opportunities to a new generation.
Former President Mohamed Nasheed said he is confident the MDP can overcome the “difficult days” it is facing. In an X post on Saturday, he noted growing calls for unity among members and shared a poem by Hussain Salahuddin, which insinuated that former President Ameen’s calls for unity during the Motaruboatu gadubadu were rooted in jealousy and hatred.
Fifteen new mosques will be built across the country ahead of next year’s Ramadan, President Muizzu said in a celebratory X post after the opening of a new Islamic Center in Haa Alif Dhihdhoo.
President Muizzu’s spokesperson, Heena Waleed, denied “completely baseless claims” that questions for the president’s town halls must be pre-approved, after PNC MP Asma Rasheed was criticised for asking constituents to submit questions ahead of his Maafannu meeting next week. Adhadhu reported that Asma was subsequently removed from key positions and had an official UK trip cancelled. She later apologised, saying her message was misunderstood and that she only intended to compile questions in case the president could not address all of them. Former MDP MP Mariya Didi criticised the president’s handling of the issue, calling it “extremely upsetting” and urging him to show respect to women and to Asma’s constituents.
Ismail Yasif, H. Lightnight, who was arrested in 2021 for issuing death threats against former President Mohamed Nasheed, has been sentenced to 10 years in prison on terror charges. Yasif, who has previously served multiple jail terms on drug-related offences, made the threats on social media and reiterated them during police questioning and in Criminal Court hearings.
Police confirmed an ongoing investigation into Dr Hussain Sunny Umar, a shareholder of Hala Tourism’s The Travel Guys, over allegations of child sexual abuse. The company said it will seize all of Sunny’s shares and that it rejects all forms of “abuse, exploitation and misconduct,” saying that he has never had an active role in its management or daily operations.
Police arrested a 52 year-old Maldivian man and a 39 year-old Thai woman in Gaaf Dhaal Thinadhoo on Friday night on prostitution charges. Police told media the couple were arrested “at the scene of the crime” while engaging in sexual intercourse. The court released the maldivian man on bail and remanded the Thai woman for four days.
Gulpar sharks were added to the Appendix 2 of the Convention on International Trade of Endangered Species (CITES) offering trade protections to the deepwater shark species. The “watershed moment” comes less than a month after the Maldives government reopened gulpar shark fishing.