Male’, Maldives – Ruling party, MDP stated that the releasing of alleged IS leader of Maldives, Mohamed Ameen from captivity shows that the responsible authorities are not taking terrorism issues as seriously as they should be.
The statement from MDP comes after the High Court negated the charges against Ameen after the state failed to file charges within the assigned duration.
In a statement released by the party, the members raised concerns on what verdict would be made against those who were arrested in relation to the terror attack against Speaker Mohamed Nasheed. The statement noted that the people who are arrested for major illicit acts such as terrorism and drug trafficking are usually released by the court in a way that charges cannot be raised against them again.
Releasing an individual that was arrested for such an illicit act shows that the investigation department, the Prosecutor General’s Office or the Court are not properly paying attention to terrorism issues and that they are not taking it seriously.
MDP
The state has charged Ameen on counts of joining a terrorist organization and planning terror acts under the Anti-Terrorism Act, however, Ameen denies all charges against him.
The Criminal Court had initially sentenced him to remand in jail until the trial was complete. However, following an appeal by the defendant the Criminal Court changed the remand to house arrest.
Ameen was arrested in October 2019 over allegations of spreading radical extremist ideologies and recruiting and dispatching fighters to other countries.
According to the OFAC bio, Ameen has assisted, sponsored, provided financial, material, and technological support for goods and services in support of ISIS-Khorasan (ISIS-K) as observed from April 2019.
OFAC states that Ameen is a recruiter who has dispatched Maldivians to Syria and Afghanistan. He is actively engaged in leading ISIS recruitment through close lieutenants, under the guise of Islamic classes in Malé and other locations in the Maldives. He recruits fighters from the Maldivian Criminal Gangs. He directs terrorist fighters to Syria and more recently Afghanistan.
