Malé, Maldives – Abbas Ardul Riza has been arrested for his tweet calling for arson at the Indian High Commission in Maldives.
He was reportedly arrested today for repeatedly tweeting disturbing and hateful tweets.
Abbas Adhil Riza, who has held senior government positions in the past, tweeted questioning the possibility of starting taking revenge for the arson attack in Addu City in 2012 from the Indian High Commission in Maldives.
His arrest comes while the Foreign Ministry said in a statement that it strongly condemns the threat and that the relevant authorities have taken necessary security measures.
Major parties of Maldives including MDP, MRM and JP have also condemned the tweet by Abbas.
Abbas was the spokesman for former President Dr. Mohammed Waheed Hassan. Abbas was also the State Minister of Finance during the Waheed’s government. He also served as the Commissioner General of Customs and the Government Trade Representative in Malaysia during the administration of President Abdullah Yameen.
