The MDP’s national council voted to take to the streets alongside other parties and civil society groups if the government goes ahead with the Eagle Hills Rasmalé deal without holding a referendum. The resolution, proposed by Mahfooz Saeed, passed with 57 of the 58 members present. Former party president Abdulla Shahid, who backed it, called the Fushidhiggaru project “a deception” from the start, alleging that up to US$800 million in public funds had been spent on it outside the approved budget. Former chairperson Fayyaz Ismail urged members to fill the streets every night until 17 November if no referendum is announced by 15 November.
The vote came after party chairperson and former President Nasheed urged the MDP not to oppose Eagle Hills or the Rasmalé agreement. He told the party’s national council he “fully” supported the project, speaking against the resolution calling for a referendum. He argued that all Maldivians descend from people who came from elsewhere and settled. Earlier in the day, Nasheed wrote on X that the MDP appeared “increasingly willing to embrace xenophobic and ultra nationalistic rhetoric,” a departure from its founding ideals of openness and pluralism. He called claims that Zionists were taking over the country baseless and said using religion as a political tool corroded public discourse. He warned that alienating the party’s liberal, multicultural base would be strategically self-defeating, and urged “principled members” to intervene.
Former MDP president Abdulla Shahid said dragging “friendly countries and our old development partners” into domestic politics was not in the national interest, insisting that the opposition’s fight was with the government. Writing on X, Shahid said the MDP opposed the government’s “non-transparent policies,” its “underhand and shady dealings,” corruption and broken promises. He said the party would hold the government accountable “without compromising our long-standing friendships with other countries.” He did not name any country. Nasheed has warned that opposing Eagle Hills and criticising its chairman, Mohamed Alabbar, could damage the MDP’s relations with the UAE.
A Chinese diving instructor said he was assaulted by three foreign divers at a depth of 18 metres at the Kuda Rah Thila dive site on Wednesday, in a confrontation captured on video that has been widely shared online. The instructor, identified in Chinese media as Xiao Du, said a diver shoved him at the crowded site. A guide then grabbed his arm and reached for his mask and regulator, an attack he called tantamount to “attempted murder.” He said he would report it to police. Liveaboard operator Maldives Legend confirmed an altercation between divers from one of its boats and guides from the Infinity X. It said it had taken statements from guests and referred the matter to the relevant authorities.
The National Boating Association of Maldives called for an impartial investigation by police and the tourism ministry, and urged against portraying the Maldives as an unsafe diving destination. The association also questioned whether Infinity X had genuine local ownership and control. It said the vessel previously operated as a foreign boat before moving to a locally registered company, Golo Maldives, and noted that its registered capacity of 40 beds differs from the 30 guests advertised on booking platforms.
Infrastructure Minister Dr Abdulla Muththalib disputed a Dhauru report that valued the 500 hectares of Rasmalé land allocated to Eagle Hills at US$24 billion, calling its method flawed. He said the reporter wrongly applied Hulhumalé’s current average price of MVR7,500 (US$486) per square foot to newly reclaimed land with no services or bridge. He used Thilafushi’s industrial land price of MVR1,750 instead and counted only about 48 per cent of land that could be sold as housing, commercial and industrial plots. He put the land’s best-case value at US$2.9 billion, before about US$1 billion in servicing costs that the state could not finance. The partnership would instead bring the state an estimated 3.1 billion from a 10 per cent revenue share and US$1.24 billion from a 4 per cent fee on property transfers, he said. Muththalib also said that when a Rasmalé property changes hands, the government would cancel the old 99-year lease and issue a new one. He had earlier given an assurance that no one would be able to renew a lease or hold property in perpetuity.
Four people were injured when a gas cylinder caught fire at Marinate café in Hulhumalé Phase 1, the NDMA said. They were being treated at Hulhumalé Hospital, but none were seriously hurt. The fire caused no further damage to the café.
Micro, small and medium enterprises can now apply to use the Bank of Maldives payment gateway to accept payments from overseas customers, with international card transactions settled in US dollars. The bank said the dollars received can be used without restriction for subscriptions and other international payments through a linked USD debit card. Businesses can apply through the Business Center Corporation’s portal. BML then handles documentation and onboarding. The scheme is run with the economic ministry and the BCC.
President Muizzu formally established a presidential commission of inquiry into the Maldives’ handling of the maritime boundary case Mauritius brought at the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea, fulfilling a pledge from his presidential address in February. The seven-member commission, chaired by Ahmed Shakir, will investigate whether state officials, advisers and authorities were legally negligent in the case, examine how case documents were kept and recommend action against those responsible. The President’s Office said international experts appointed to study the case had found that the Maldives’ actions led to the loss of a vast area of its territory.
The Criminal Court gave Thinadhoo Mayor Saud Ali a final 10 days to appoint a lawyer in his trial on charges of falsifying population figures to win city status for the island. Judge Ahmed Shafiu said the court did not accept that Saud had missed Thursday’s hearing and then turned up on Sunday without a lawyer. He warned that the trial would go ahead at the next hearing on 10 November even if Saud came alone. Prosecutors allege that in September 2022, Saud sent the Local Government Authority a false list, including dead people and unverifiable details, to show that Thinadhoo’s population had reached the 10,000 needed for city status. When the LGA asked for a verified list with ID card numbers, he sent another in August 2023 that put the population at 10,500 but included people registered on other islands and duplicate names, the PG’s office said.
Chinese Ambassador Kong Xianhua called on Pakistan’s High Commissioner Faisal Rasul Lodhi and congratulated Pakistan on President Muizzu’s recent state visit, the 20 MoUs signed and the target of raising bilateral trade to US$200 million within two years, the Pakistan High Commission said.
A delegation from Sanya, in China’s Hainan province, signed a framework agreement with Mariculture Maldives on breeding tropical aquaculture species, large-scale marine farming and two-way trade in fresh seafood, according to a Sanya press release. The agreement was signed during a two-day visit that coincided with last week’s China-Maldives Investment Cooperation Forum, and the Maldivian company plans to set up operations in Sanya. The delegation also discussed with the fisheries ministry developing trade routes for Maldivian tuna and other seafood to be processed in Sanya for export to global markets. It held talks with Gulf Craft Maldives and Al Shaali Marine on yacht trade and a planned yacht manufacturing and maintenance facility in Sanya.
First Lady Sajidha Mohamed called for mental health to be given the same importance as physical health, speaking at the opening of the 16th International Conference of the SAARC Psychiatric Federation at the Maldives National University on Sunday. She voiced particular concern for children and young people, citing academic pressure, family difficulties and online influences. She also pointed to the government’s National Mental Health Strategic Action Plan 2025–2029 and the 24-hour mental health helpline. The two-day conference ends on Monday.
