• If more countries take resolute stances against Israel, ‘cumulative effect will become impossible to ignore,’ says Muizzu

• When powerful countries shield Israel from consequences, international mechanisms ‘are weakened, and justice is delayed,’ warns 47-year-old president

ISTANBUL / ANKARA

The president of the island nation of Maldives reaffirmed his country’s solidarity with Palestine, saying: “True sovereignty is measured not by size or might, but by the ability to uphold conscience in the face of pressure.”

In a written interview with Anadolu, Mohamed Muizzu discussed Israel’s actions in Gaza since October 2023 and the global community’s inaction, emphasizing that international law must apply equally to all nations.

Elected in November 2023, Muizzu this April banned Israeli passport holders from entering the Maldives, describing Israel’s attacks on civilian ships carrying humanitarian aid in international waters as an “insult to international law.”

Last October, the Maldives joined South Africa’s genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which is still in progress, as Israeli attacks in the enclave to date have killed over 67,000 Palestinians.

“The Maldives believes the international community must go beyond words of condemnation and ensue that international law is applied impartially. There can be no exceptions,” said Muizzu.

“Israel must be held accountable through sustained political pressure, sanctions, and restrictions that make it clear that such crimes will not be tolerated.”

Reaffirming his country’s decades-long solidarity with Palestine, Muizzu said: “We have now banned Israeli passport holders from entering Maldives.”

“We joined the case against Israel at the ICJ. We will continue to call for a sovereign Palestinian state based on the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital. We will continue to support Palestine's full membership at the United Nations. We will remain engaged in international forums to make certain that the Palestinian cause is never forgotten, and to ensure justice is served. Our message is unwavering: until Palestine is free, our work is not done.”

Muizzu, 47, warned that institutions like the UN and international courts “are weakened not by their nature but by the powerful states that prevent them from functioning properly.”

He argued that leadership is tested in such moments — when moral clarity conflicts with economic or political convenience.

‘Maldives rejects that principles can be compromised for profit”

Arguing that when a small country like the Maldives can take action against Israel, it represents more than a symbolic gesture, as it is a declaration of principle, Muizzu emphasized that even if the Maldives were to stand alone, “its position would not change.”

However, he said that if more countries took such resolute stances, the "cumulative effect will become impossible to ignore."

Muizzu stressed that no economic interest or strategic calculation can ever justify remaining silent in the face of genocide, adding: “If financial gain or political convenience outweighs the lives of innocent men, women, and children, then we have lost our moral compass as a global community.”

He reiterated his firm rejection of the idea that principles can be traded for profit, warning that those who compromise justice for advantage will be remembered as standing with oppression.

“True sovereignty is not measured by a nation’s size or military might, but by its ability to stay true to its conscience even under pressure,” he said.

The Maldives is an archipelagic nation in South Asia, located in the eastern Arabian Sea, southwest of Sri Lanka and India, and home to nearly 530,000 people.

“For the Maldives, sovereignty means the freedom to act in line with conscience. Even the smallest of nations can choose justice, and in doing so, remind the world of its duty to humanity,” Muizzu added.

Maldives will continue to stand with the Palestinian people

Muizzu said the decision to ban Israeli passport holders from entering the Maldives was not taken lightly, saying: “It was a deliberate choice to align our policies with our conscience and our commitment to justice.”

The impact of this decision, he said, should not be measured by immediate tangible results but by its value as an example of principled leadership.

Saying Palestine has always held a special place in the hearts of Maldivians, and that his country defended the Palestinian people’s right to statehood and self-determination even before October 2023, Muizzu said: “Accountability has remained elusive. It is because too many states have allowed political expediency to override moral clarity.”

“International mechanisms exist to uphold the rule of law, but when powerful countries shield Israel from consequences, those mechanisms are weakened, and justice is delayed. Even when binding rulings are issued, without the collective will to enforce them, they have become empty gestures.”

“The Maldives, for its part, will continue to raise its voice in every forum and stand firmly with the Palestinian people until justice and freedom are achieved,” he said.