MDP office set on fire amid escalating tension

The arson attack follows vandalism of the main opposition party’s office for two consecutive nights and numerous death threats sent from unlisted numbers to MDP MPs, senior members and dozens of journalists.

Eyewitnesses told local media that petrol was poured into the ground floor of the office through the smashed up windows before a lit molotov cocktail was hurled inside. A second lit molotov cocktail fell outside the door.

A team from the fire and rescue service of the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) arrived shortly after the incident and extinguished the flames. The damage caused by the fire was reported to be minor.