Parliament's Petition Committee has approved the petition calling for the ban on Israeli arrivals and entry of the country's passport holders into the Maldives.
Over 1,000 individuals have signed the petition submitted by "Rights Movement" organization, which primarily urged the government to ban Israeli arrivals.
Besides the approved petition, a resolution calling for a travel ban on Israel was submitted by an MP earlier, due to which members in the Petition Committee had requested to push both matters parallelly.
"A resolution by an MP on the matter has already been debated over, and sent to the foreign affairs committee for evaluation," Keyodhoo MP Hussain Gasim said.
Gasim proposed the Petition Committee works in unison with the Foreign Relations committee on the matter.
Kelaa MP Ibrahim Shareef suggested for the Petition Committee to evaluate the petition and forward it to Foreign Relations committee for a final decision.
Members of The Democrats in the committee argued the body can make a decision on matters of public interest.
West-Henveiru MP Hassan Latheef noted that majority of issues submitted to the petition committee have elements that come under the mandates of other committee, adding he does not find it necessary for the issue to be forwarded for the assessment of each individual committee.
Latheef said he believed the Petition Committee had the authority to make a decision on the issue.
Since none of the members in the committee supported the issue's submission to the Foreign Relations committee, voting for it was not called.
The petition calling for a travel ban on Israelis was approved at the committee unanimously.
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