Explosion that wounded Speaker Nasheed was from an IED: MNDF

An Improvised Explosive Device (IED) had been used to target Former President and current Speaker of Parliament Mohamed Nasheed on Thursday evening, confirms Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF).

This was revealed by the Chief of Defense Force, Major General Abdulla Shamaal during a press briefing hosted on Friday evening, where he confirmed that an IED was used to carry out the terrorist attack on Nasheed, who was headed out to attend a ceremony at an island on Thursday night. Nasheed left his house at approximately 8:25pm on Thursday.

Shamaal went on to reveal that the remote-controlled explosive was attached to a parked motorcycle and that most of its impact was tracked upwards.

The explosive went off at around 8:27pm, very close to an incoming car and Nasheed was also in close proximity of the IED, which was detonated using a remote control while he was getting into his car with security personnel.

Major General Shamaal confirmed that Speaker Nasheed was knocked to the ground following the blast and his security personnel had attempted to carry him into his car parked on Majeedhee Magu, however, the car failed to start and they then carried him to a back-up vehicle in which he was transported to ADK Hospital within seven minutes, for emergency treatment.

It was also revealed that three officers of MNDF attained severe injuries in the terrorist attack and that they were treated for wounds. All three officers have since been released from the hospital.

Praising the efforts of Nasheed’s security personnel, who refused treatment until Nasheed’s status was clear, Shamaal said that he was very satisfied with their performance to ensure the former president’s safety first.

Further, Shamaal stressed that the intelligence was constantly being tipped off over threats and dangers to the former president’s life and that he was afforded strong security, one of the highest afforded to anyone in the country. Due to this, the CP team operates while armed, to ensure he is safe from any dangers, at all times.

During the presser Shamaal assured that the defense force based all of their operations around the fact that Nasheed is a high-risk target, always and that they are constantly working to further strengthen the former president’s security details.

Highlighting that intelligence reports indicated that there was another explosive device in the region, after which point officers began to evacuate the region as a bomb squad was deployed, Shamaal noted that officers found out later that it was a false report, no other explosives had been uncovered.

Due to the terrorist attack, which saw an IED more powerful than the one detonated in Sultan Park in 2007, armed MNDF officers will be active across different parts of the country as the island nation’s alert status has been increased nationwide.

It was also revealed during the presser that the attempt on Nasheed’s life was not believed to have been an “inside job” at a time reports indicating as such have been circulating.

Highlighting that authorities remain unclear on the materials used to create the explosive which was detonated with razor as shrapnel for increased damage, Shamaal said that it is more concerning that Maldives currently has trained bomb-makers. This is particularly concerning with Maldives being one of the countries with the highest per capital of citizens traveling abroad to join foreign conflicts in active war zones.

Also speaking to the public during Friday’s presser, Minister of Defense and National Security, Mariya Ahmed Didi urged the public to show unity and solidarity during such times of crisis, to effectively seek out the perpetrators and bring them to justice.

Stating that even the smallest bit of information could be essential to the investigation, the minister urged the public to come forth with any suspicious activity observed at the scene of the attack.