Maldives president escapes explosion on speedboat

A month ago, an unknown group threatened to kill the president and to launch attacks against the country’s lucrative tourism industry in a video posted on the internet.

Attacks would be launched after 30 days, the video, which was posted in the last week of August, announced.

The president of the Maldives appeared to have escaped unscathed from an explosion on his speedboat as he returned to the luxury tourist destination from the hhajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia.

The blast occurred as the boat carrying Yameen Abdul Gayoom, who took power after a contested election in the island nation in 2013, approached the main jetty of the capital Malé.

Officials said Gayoom’s wife, Fathimath Ibrahim, and a bodyguard suffered minor injuries. The 56-year-old president, his wife and a number of members of his entourage were taken directly to hospital following the incident.

Mohammed Hussein Shareef, a minister at the president’s office, told the Guardian the cause of the blast, thought to have happened in the engine room of the boat, was not known.

“It was a relatively large blast. The explosion could be heard a few blocks away. Part of the roof, the speedboat’s housing fell in, but President Yameen is safe. He did not sustain injuries,” Shareef said.

“We do not know if this is an accident. The speedboat is with the army. We do not know if it was mechanical, deliberate of something was planted. The Maldives National Defence Force is not [... ruling] anything out.”

Ahmed Hamdhoon, a local journalist who was on the jetty to cover Gayoom’s arrival, said he heard a blast as soon as the boat docked.

“The right door of the boat fell on the jetty and there was heavy smoke. People were screaming,” he said.

The Maldives is known for its expensive upmarket island resorts but the small Muslim country has been hit by political infighting and disputed elections in recent years, though it is not known for serious political violence such as bomb attacks.There is a growing problem with Islamic militancy, however.

A month ago, an unknown group threatened to kill the president and to launch attacks against the country’s lucrative tourism industry in a video posted on the internet.

The identity of those making the threat was unclear, though they appeared to claim some kind of link with Islamic State, the extremist movement which controls a swath of Iraq and Syria. They called for new anti-terrorist legislation to be withdrawn, among other demands.

Attacks would be launched after 30 days, the video, which was posted in the last week of August, announced.

Although alcohol is banned in the conservative Islamic nation, drinking is permitted in the resorts. Most tourists go directly to remote atolls for their holidays.

The country’s international airport is on a separate island and a short boat trip is needed to reach the capital island.

Reporters were at the presidential capital’s jetty to receive Yameen, who had landed a few minutes earlier after the flight from Saudi Arabia.

Three people are reported to have suffered minor injuries, with a bodyguard the most seriously hurt.

Shareef, the minister, said the injured were receiving treatment.

“We don’t know the extent of the injuries yet. The first lady is undergoing tests and scans. She is definitely injured. The aide had limb injuries and the bodyguard is in pretty bad shape. But it is not life-threatening.”

Footage of the incident from the state broadcaster shows Yameen attending to his wife on the floor of the speedboat. Bodyguards quickly hustle him to a waiting police vessel. Several ministers, president’s office staff, MPs and family members of the president were on board the speedboat.

Yameen took power in a disputed election in 2013 and has been criticised for his human rights record since. Opposition leader and climate change activist Mohamed Nasheed was jailed earlier this year on what supporters say are trumped up charges.