Bangladesh reimposes travel ban on Israel

Dhaka: The Bangladeshi government has directed the reprinting of the phrase “This passport is valid for all countries of the world except Israel” on the country’s passports.

According to Bangladeshi media, the Security Services Division of the Ministry of Home Affairs has directed the Immigration and Passport Department to reprint the phrase “This passport is valid for all countries of the world except Israel” on Bangladeshi passports.

During the government of Hasina Wajid, the words ‘except Israel’ were removed from this phrase on the Bangladeshi passport in 2021. However, the then government had made it clear that there had been no change in Bangladesh’s policy towards Israel.

It is pertinent to note that the Pakistani passport also bears the phrase “This passport is valid for all countries of the world except Israel”.

The public support for Palestine in Bangladesh was once again highlighted on Saturday when nearly 100,000 people demonstrated in solidarity with Gaza in the capital, Dhaka.