The political crisis in the Maldives deepened Monday, as the government of the island nation said it would not obey a Supreme Court order to free a group of imprisoned opposition leaders.

The surprise judicial ruling last week has led to an increasingly tense standoff between the Supreme Court and the government of President Yameen Abdul Gayoom, with protests spilling into the streets of the capital, Male, and soldiers in riot gear deployed to the parliament building to stop lawmakers from meeting.

On Monday, Legal Affairs Minister Azima Shakoor said that "the government does not believe that the Supreme Court ruling to release the political prisoners can be enforced."

She explained the decision by saying that the Supreme Court had not acted on a series of government letters saying there were "numerous challenges" to implementing it. On Sunday, a Supreme Court statement said that "there are no obstacles in implementing the ruling and releasing political prisoners and that this has been informed to the Prosecutor General's office."

There was no immediate comment from Yameen's main rival, exiled former President Mohammed Nasheed, who is among the prisoners ordered freed.

The Supreme Court ruled that the political leaders' guilty verdicts had been politically influenced. The ruling has led to protests by opposition supporters urging the government to obey the order. Clashes erupted between police and the political opponents on Thursday and Friday. Soldiers surrounded the parliament building over the weekend to stop lawmakers from entering the building.

The United Nations and several foreign governments, including the United States, have urged the Maldives to respect the court order.

Nasheed has been living in exile in Britain since 2016 after being given asylum when he traveled there on medical leave from prison.

In addition to ordering the release of the political prisoners, the court also reinstated 12 lawmakers who had been ousted for switching allegiance to the opposition. When those lawmakers return, Yameen's Progressive Party of the Maldives will lose its majority in the 85-member parliament, which could result in the legislative body functioning as a rival power to the president.

Known for its luxury tourist resorts, the Maldives became a multiparty democracy 10 years ago after decades of autocratic rule by the current president's half brother, Maumoon Abdul Gayoom.

But the nation lost much of its democratic gains after Yameen, who has maintained a tight grip on power, was elected in 2013. He had been set to run for re-election this year virtually unopposed, with all of his opponents either jailed or exiled.

On Friday, Nasheed said he would mount a fresh challenge for the presidency this year.

Nasheed was sentenced to 13 years in prison after he was convicted under the Maldives' anti-terror laws. The trial that was widely condemned by international rights groups.</s>The Maldives government has declared a 15-day state of emergency as the political crisis deepened over a stand-off between the president and the supreme court in the Indian Ocean nation.

A surprise supreme court ruling last week ordering the release of imprisoned opposition leaders has led to growing turmoil, with the president lashing out at the court, opposition protests spilling into the streets of the capital, Male, and soldiers in riot gear deployed to the parliament building to stop MPs from entering.

The extent of the emergency order is not immediately clear.

President Yameen Abdul Gayoom said on state television: "During this time, though certain rights will be restricted, general movements, services and businesses will not be affected."

Opposition protests spilling into the streets of the capital, Male.

Exiled former president Mohammed Nasheed - Mr Yameen's main political rival - is among the people who were ordered released by the court.

Mr Yameen, in a letter to the court released by his office earlier on Monday, said the order had encroached on the powers of the state and was an "infringement of national security and public interest". He urged the court to "review the concerns" of the government.

Officials said the court had not properly responded to a series of letters citing problems with implementing the order, including that the cases against the political prisoners are at different legal stages. A supreme court statement on Sunday said "there are no obstacles in implementing the ruling ... and that this has been informed to the prosecutor general's office".

The supreme court ruled that the politicians' guilty verdicts had been politically influenced. The ruling has led to protests by opposition supporters urging the government to obey the order.

The United Nations and several foreign governments, including the United States, have urged the Maldives to respect the court order.

Mr Nasheed has been living in exile in the UK since 2016 after being granted asylum when he travelled there on medical leave from prison.

In addition to ordering the release of the political prisoners, the court also reinstated 12 MPs who had been ousted for switching allegiance to the opposition. When those MPs return, Mr Yameen's Progressive Party of the Maldives will lose its majority in the 85-member parliament, which could result in the legislative body functioning as a rival power to the president.

Known for its luxury tourist resorts, the Maldives became a multi-party democracy 10 years ago after decades of autocratic rule by the current president's half-brother, Maumoon Abdul Gayoom.

But the nation lost much of its democratic gains after Mr Yameen, who has maintained a tight grip on power, was elected in 2013. He had been set to run for re-election this year virtually unopposed, with all of his opponents either jailed or exiled.

On Friday, Mr Nasheed said he would mount a fresh challenge for the presidency this year. Mr Nasheed was sentenced to 13 years in prison after he was convicted under the Maldives' anti-terror laws. The trial was widely condemned by international rights groups.</s>NEW DELHI: Beleaguered Maldivian President Abdulla Yameen has declared a 15-day state of Emergency, his aide Azima Shukoor announced on state television on Monday night. The move gives sweeping powers to security forces to arrest and detain suspects as Yameen refuses to comply with a Supreme Court order to release political prisoners.India is in touch with friendly countries including West Asian nations after the Supreme Court of Maldives sought its intervention amid a snowballing political crisis as President Abdulla Yameen chose to suspend parliament instead of complying with the court's order directing release of nine lawmakers, a step that would have restored the opposition's majority."As a matter of principle India does not interfere in the internal politics of any country. But it won't be surprising if any of the friendly countries impresses upon President Abdullah Yameen to arrest the situation," said an expert on India-Maldives relations, who did not wish to be identified.Some of the West Asian nations have a strong influence on Yameen. "Maldives is extremely critical for India's security interests and the unfolding situation warrants close monitoring," the expert said.India, like some other countries in the region and beyond, has been worried over the growing trend of fundamentalism in Maldives, where sections of youth have been lured to join ISIS. The latest crisis was triggered when the Maldivian SC last Thursday ordered the release of some opposition leaders, including former president Mohammed Nasheed, after overturning their "terrorism" convictions.</s>Former Leader And Two Supreme Court Judges Arrested In Maldives State Of Emergency

The government of President Yameen Abdul Gayoom has arrested an opposition leader and two Supreme Court judges hours after declaring a 15-day state of emergency in the Indian Ocean country best known for its luxury tourist resorts.

The action escalates tensions after the nation's Supreme Court ordered the government to release nine jailed opposition leaders.

Opposition leader Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, who also served as president between 1978 to 2008, has been charged with bribery and attempting to overthrow the government.

As The Associated Press reports:

"The 15-day emergency decree issued late Monday gives the government sweeping powers to make arrests, search and seize property and restricts freedom of assembly, officials said. "Soon after the declaration, security forces stormed into the Supreme Court building, where Chief Justice Abdulla Saeed and judge Ali Hamid were arrested. The charges against them have not been specified. The whereabouts of the court's other two judges were not known Tuesday morning. "Since the surprise, unanimous ruling last week ordering the release of imprisoned opposition leaders, President Yameen Abdul Gayoom has lashed out at the court, opposition protests have spilled into the streets of the capital, Male, and soldiers in riot gear have stopped lawmakers from meeting in the parliament building."

The detained opposition leader, Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, is the estranged half-brother of the current president Yameen Abdul Gayoom.

NPR's Julie McCarthy reports that the president's crackdown has tarnished the image, and no doubt the revenues, of the Maldives as an upmarket holiday destination and many parties are looking to India to pressure the government to ensure the rule of law.

In a statement, Department of State spokeswoman Heather Nauert said the United States "is troubled and disappointed" by reports of the state of emergency.

Another opposition leader, former President Mohamed Nasheed issue a statement from Sri Lanka denouncing President Yameen's state of emergency:

Nasheed, the Maldives first democratically elected leader, recently told the BBC that he plans to return from exile to contest elections.</s>The Maldives government has declared a state of emergency for 15 days amid a political crisis in the island nation.

The state of emergency gives security officials extra powers to arrest suspects, reports say.

The government has already suspended parliament and ordered the army to resist any moves by the Supreme Court to impeach President Abdulla Yameen.

The court had ordered the reinstatement of 12 MPs, which would see the opposition majority restored.

In a landmark decision, it also ruled the trial of ex-President Mohamed Nasheed unconstitutional.

Following the Supreme Court's decision on Friday, the government sacked the police commissioner who had pledged to enforce the court ruling.

It also ordered the detention of two opposition MPs who had returned to the Maldives, and warned that any court order to arrest the president for not complying with the Supreme Court ruling would be illegal.

Opposition MP Eva Abdulla said in a statement that the state of emergency was "a desperate move" that showed the government had "lost everything [including the] confidence of the people and institutions".

Mr Nasheed, who is currently in Sri Lanka, was the island's first democratically elected leader.

The Maldives has seen political unrest since he was convicted in 2015 under anti-terrorism laws for ordering the arrest of a judge. His conviction and 13-year sentence was internationally condemned, and he was given political asylum in the UK.

The Maldives previously declared a state of emergency in November 2015, after the government said it was investigating a plot to assassinate Mr Yameen.

That move also came two days before a planned protest by the country's main opposition, the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP).

The Indian Ocean nation has been independent from Britain for 53 years. It was ruled for decades autocratically by then President Maumoon Abdul Gayhoom but became a multi-party democracy in 2008.

However since President Yameen took power in 2013 it has faced questions over freedom of speech, the detention of opponents and the independence of the judiciary.

The nation is made up of 26 coral atolls and 1,192 individual islands, and is popular among foreigners as a luxury tourist destination.</s>Maldivian opposition supporters scuffle with security forces officers during a protest demanding the release of political prisoners in Male. (File Photo | AP)

NEW DELHI: With Maldives in turmoil following a face-off between the government and its Supreme Court, India is expected to follow a standard operating procedure (SOP) that includes keeping the troops in readiness, government sources indicated today.

India, which said it was "disturbed" over the situation in the archipelago nation, has already issued a travel advisory as part of the SOP but officials would not confirm one of its crucial aspects pertaining to keeping troops on standby.

Sources said troop movement has been seen at a key airbase in Southern India.

According to the SOP, the troops are kept ready to meet any eventuality, crisis or requirement for help, sources said, adding there is nothing unusual about such SOPs.

Significantly, exiled former Maldivian president Mohamed Nasheed today sought India's diplomatic and military intervention to resolve the crisis in the country after President Abdulla Yameen declared a state of emergency and got arrested the top judge of the country's apex court.

The Indian Navy patrols sea lanes around Maldives as naval cooperation between the two countries are robust.

India had yesterday asked its nationals to defer all nonessential travels to the Indian Ocean nation until further notice.

In an advisory, the external affairs ministry also asked Indian expatriates in Maldives to maintain heightened security awareness.

The picturesque Indian Ocean archipelago, which has seen a number of political crises since the ouster of its first democratically-elected president Nasheed in 2012, plunged into chaos on Thursday last when the apex court ordered the release of nine imprisoned opposition politicians, maintaining that their trials were "politically motivated and flawed".

The Yameen government refused to implement the order, prompting a wave of protests in capital Male, with clashes between police and demonstrators.

Chief Justice Abdulla Saeed and another judge, Ali Hameed, were arrested hours after President Yameen declared a state of emergency yesterday. No details were given about the investigation or charges against them.

Former president Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, who has allied himself with the opposition, was also detained at his home.</s>India on Tuesday said that it was disturbed by the situation in the Maldives where President Abdulla Yameen has declared a state of emergency and has put judges and political leaders behind the bars.”We are disturbed by the declaration of a state of emergency in the Maldives following the refusal of the government to abide by the unanimous ruling of the full bench of the Supreme Court on February 1, and also by the suspension of constitutional rights of the people of Maldives,” the External Affairs Ministry said in statement.

“The arrest of the Supreme Court Chief Justice and political figures are also reasons for concern,” it stated. “Government continues to carefully monitor the situation.”The statement comes after former Maldives President Mohammed Nasheed, earlier in the day, sought India’s help to resolve the raging political crisis in the Indian Ocean archipelago nation. Taking to Twitter, Nasheed said that he was requesting India, on behalf of the Maldivian people, to send its envoy, “backed by its military”, to release judges and political detainees, including former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom

Nasheed, who lives in self-exile in Britain, also requested the US “to stop all financial transactions of Maldives regime leaders going through US banks”. Meanwhile, in his first public statement after clamping a 15-day state of emergency and jailing the country’s Chief Justice, President Yameen in a live address on Tuesday said he had taken the move as the top judge and another apex court judge were involved in corruption and also alleged a “coup” by them – indirectly disobeying his orders, including making moves to impeach him.

Maldivian police arrested Chief Justice Abdulla Saeed and Justice Ali Hameed from the Supreme Court at around 3 a.m., after an almost seven-hour siege and took them to a detention facility outside Male. The Maldives has been facing unrest after the Supreme Court ruled last week to release top opposition political leaders including former President Nasheed and former Vice President Ahmed Adeeb. The US State Department said it was “troubled and disappointed” by the developments in the archipelago nation, while British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson called on President Yameen to lift the emergency. India, China and Britain have issued travel warnings for their citizens.</s>The political crisis in the Maldives deepened Monday, as the government of the island nation said it would not obey a Supreme Court order to free a group of imprisoned opposition leaders.

The surprise judicial ruling last week has led to an increasingly tense standoff between the Supreme Court and the government of President Yameen Abdul Gayoom, with protests spilling into the streets of the capital, Male, and soldiers in riot gear deployed to the parliament building to stop lawmakers from meeting.

On Monday, Legal Affairs Minister Azima Shakoor said that "the government does not believe that the Supreme Court ruling to release the political prisoners can be enforced."

She explained the decision by saying that the Supreme Court had not acted on a series of government letters saying there were "numerous challenges" to implementing it. On Sunday, a Supreme Court statement said that "there are no obstacles in implementing the ruling and releasing political prisoners and that this has been informed to the Prosecutor General's office."

There was no immediate comment from Yameen's main rival, exiled former President Mohammed Nasheed, who is among the prisoners ordered freed.

The Supreme Court ruled that the political leaders' guilty verdicts had been politically influenced. The ruling has led to protests by opposition supporters urging the government to obey the order. Clashes erupted between police and the political opponents on Thursday and Friday. Soldiers surrounded the parliament building over the weekend to stop lawmakers from entering the building.

The United Nations and several foreign governments, including the United States, have urged the Maldives to respect the court order.

Nasheed has been living in exile in Britain since 2016 after being given asylum when he traveled there on medical leave from prison.

In addition to ordering the release of the political prisoners, the court also reinstated 12 lawmakers who had been ousted for switching allegiance to the opposition. When those lawmakers return, Yameen's Progressive Party of the Maldives will lose its majority in the 85-member parliament, which could result in the legislative body functioning as a rival power to the president.

Known for its luxury tourist resorts, the Maldives became a multiparty democracy 10 years ago after decades of autocratic rule by the current president's half brother, Maumoon Abdul Gayoom.

But the nation lost much of its democratic gains after Yameen, who has maintained a tight grip on power, was elected in 2013. He had been set to run for re-election this year virtually unopposed, with all of his opponents either jailed or exiled.

On Friday, Nasheed said he would mount a fresh challenge for the presidency this year.

Nasheed was sentenced to 13 years in prison after he was convicted under the Maldives' anti-terror laws. The trial that was widely condemned by international rights groups.</s>The political crisis in the Maldives deepened this week after embattled President Abdulla Yameen declared a state of emergency and ordered the arrest of top judges and a former president.

The upmarket holiday paradise does not often find itself in the news but a shock Supreme Court decision last week ordering the release of top opposition politicians has triggered a furious response from authoritarian ruler Yameen.

How will the latest round of political strife play out in the Indian Ocean archipelago?

Yameen, who came to power in 2013, has presided over an escalating crackdown on dissent that has battered the Maldives' reputation. He has jailed almost all the political opposition.

The Maldives was plunged into fresh chaos this week after the president refused to comply with the Supreme Court's Thursday order to release nine dissidents and restore the seats of 12 legislators sacked for defecting from Yameen's party.

The Supreme Court ruling gives the opposition the majority in the assembly - meaning they could potentially impeach the president.

In a stunning blow to the regime, it also paves the way for exiled former president Mohamed Nasheed - the first democratically elected leader who was controversially convicted of terrorism in 2015 - to return and run for president this year.

On Monday, Yameen sent soldiers to storm the court and arrest judges, with Maldives police also detaining Yameen's estranged half-brother and former president Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, who had sided with the main opposition.

Hundreds of people gathered outside the court complex and police used pepper spray to disperse the crowds.

Where do the security forces stand?

The head of the armed forces is publicly backing Yameen.

"The Maldives military will not standby and watch Maldives go in to a crisis," military chief Ahmed Shiyam said Sunday, warning he would not obey "unlawful orders" from the Supreme Court.

But as ex-president Gayoom - who ruled for 30 years until 2008 elections - was led out of his house, riot police saluted him, according to the local Maldives Independent website, and analysts have warned his arrest could split the security forces as he still commands deep respect.

The emergency declaration gives sweeping powers to security forces to arrest and detain individuals, curtails the powers of the judiciary and bars parliament from impeaching Yameen.

The opposition says it shows Yameen is "desperate" and Nasheed, who has previously expressed fears of unrest in the troubled Indian Ocean nation, said it amounted to imposing martial law.

Yameen has drawn close to China and Saudi Arabia during his time in office, with both countries investing heavily in the tiny tourist archipelago in the Indian Ocean, and may feel he has enough support to weather the storm.

How did we get here?

Mohamed Nasheed became the country's first democratically elected president in 2008 and swiftly became an international celebrity because of his urgent pleas to address climate change. He held a cabinet meeting underwater to highlight the low-lying archipelago's plight.

The country has been locked in a slow-burn political crisis since Yameen won a controversial run-off against Nasheed in 2013 presidential elections.

During his time in power "President Yameen has systematically alienated his coalition, jailed or exiled every major opposition political figure, deprived elected Members of Parliament of their right to represent their voters... revised laws to erode human rights (and fired) any officials who refuse orders," the US State Department said.

What about the tourists?

The tensions have already hurt the tourism industry - the largest contributor to the country's economy - despite government assurances that visitors are safe.

China - the number one source of tourists for the Maldives - and neighbouring India have already warned their national to defer all non-essential travel, and the UK and the US have warned their nationals to exercise caution in Male.

In 2015, when the government declared a state of emergency because of fears of terrorism, tourist booking plummeted which hit economic growth hard.

Nearly 1.4 million foreigners visited the Maldives last year, up from 1.28 million the previous year.

What happens next?

All eyes are on the security forces to see what will happen now that Gayoom is in detention, and whether further street protests will break out despite the state of emergency.

Nasheed has already said he will run again in elections scheduled for this year and has called for regional super power India to intervene.

Yameen, who has previously faced several unsuccessful opposition attempts to impeach him for alleged corruption, looks determined to fight off all challenges to his rule

Opposition legislators have also called on the international community to pressure Yameen.</s>MALE (Reuters) - Maldives police arrested former president Maumoon Abdul Gayoom on Monday, his spokesman Abdul Aleem told Reuters, hours after President Abdulla Yameen declared a state of emergency for 15 days, in an escalation of a legal battle with the archipelago’s top court.

Gayoom, who is Yameen’s half-brother and ruled the country for 30 years until 2008, was arrested at his residence, along with his son-in-law. Yameen has defied a Supreme Court ruling ordering jailed opposition leaders to be freed, including Gayoom’s son Farish, an opposition lawmaker.
The President of the Maldives, Abdulla Yameen, declares a 15-day state of emergency. Security forces storm the Supreme Court of the Maldives in a bid to block the court-ordered release of jailed opposition politicians. Police arrest former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom.