Maldives lifts 45-day state of emergency, says there is a ‘diminished threat to national security’
Maldives President Abdulla Yameen had imposed the emergency on February 5 after the Supreme Court ordered the government to release political prisoners.
Maldives President Abdulla Yameen on Thursday lifted the state of emergency imposed in the country after 45 days. It was first imposed on February 5 for 15 days and then extended for a month after the Supreme Court ordered the government to release political prisoners.
On Tuesday, Maldivian Ambassador to Sri Lanka Mohamed Hussain Shareef had assured that the emergency would not be extended again “unless something unusual happens”.
“Although there still exists a diminished threat to national security, because the nation can now continue without further losses incurred, and upon the advice of the Security Services and in an effort to promote normalcy, the president has decided to lift the state of emergency,” Yameen’s office said in a statement on Thursday, according to Reuters.
Hours after the emergency was declared on February 5, security forces stormed the Supreme Court complex and arrested Chief Justice Abdulla Saeed and Justice Ali Hameed. The police also arrested former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, who is Yameen’s half-brother. On Wednesday, the judges and the former president, along with six other people, were charged with terrorism. The prosecutor’s office has accused them of “conspiring to instigate a coup” through the Supreme Court’s order to release political prisoners.