Maldives bars travelers with Israeli passports over Gaza war

MALE, Maldives (AP) — The Maldives has changed its immigration law to bar people from entering the country with Israeli passports in a show of outrage over the war in Gaza.

The amendment was passed by Parliament on Monday and approved by President Mohamed Muizzu on Tuesday, according to a statement from the president's office.

The Maldives immigration service clarified that Israeli citizens who have a second passport would be able to enter the country.

The Cabinet took the decision nearly a year ago but the government did not formalize it until this week.

“The ratification reflects the government’s firm stance in response to the continuing atrocities and ongoing acts of genocide committed by Israel against the Palestinian people,” the statement said.

Maldives is a tiny archipelago state south of India known as a high-end tourist destination. It is predominantly a Sunni Muslim nation where preaching and practicing other faiths is legally banned.

According to the latest available immigration statistics, 59 people with Israeli passports entered the Maldives in February.

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FILE - Policemen patrol near the Parliament building as members vote on the impeachment motion against Vice-President Ahmed Adeeb in Male, Maldives, Thursday, Nov. 5, 2015. (AP Photo/Sinan Hussain, File)

FILE- Foreign tourists arrive in a resort in the Kurumba island in Maldives, Feb. 12, 2012. (AP Photo/ Gemunu Amarasinghe, File)

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump’s motorcade took a different route than usual to the airport as he was departing Florida on Sunday due to a “suspicious object,” according to the White House.

The object, which the White House did not describe, was discovered during security sweeps in advance of Trump’s arrival at Palm Beach International Airport.

“A further investigation was warranted and the presidential motorcade route was adjusted accordingly,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement Sunday.

The president, when asked about the package by reporters, said, “I know nothing about it.”

Trump left his Palm Beach, Florida, club, Mar-a-Lago, around 6:20 p.m. for the roughly 10-minute drive to the airport, but took a circular route around the city to get there.

During the drive, police officers on motorcycles created a moving blockade for the motorcade, at one point almost colliding with the vans that accompanied Trump.

Air Force One was parked on the opposite side of the airport from where it is usually located and the lights outside the plane were turned off.

Anthony Guglielmi, the spokesman for U.S. Secret Service, said the secondary route was taken just as a precaution and that “that is standard protocol.”

President Donald Trump departs Trump International Golf Club in the presidential limousine, known as The Beast, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in West Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)