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| Photo: File |
The Bangladeshi government has announced that it will restore the words 'except Israel' on general passports.
According to Bangladeshi media, Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed told reporters that the 'except Israel' clause, which was already implemented on diplomatic passports, will be restored on general passports.
Sources in the Bangladeshi Home Ministry and the Immigration and Passport Department say that this decision is being restored in line with Bangladesh's foreign policy, public sentiment and moral stance on the Palestinian issue.
According to Bangladeshi media, the phrase 'except Israel' was removed from passports during the tenure of the Awami League government in 2021, when the e-passport service was launched at a cost of around 4500 crore taka, a decision for which the Hasina Wajid government also faced heavy criticism.
During the interim government last year, the Ministry of Home Affairs issued a letter on April 7 directing the authorities to add the phrase 'except Israel' back to passports. However, this decision could not be fully implemented at that time, except for diplomatic passports.
It should be noted that Bangladesh has never had diplomatic relations with Israel and does not have them today. Since its separation from Pakistan in 1971, Bangladeshi passports, like Pakistani passports, have traditionally carried the phrase "This passport is valid for all countries of the world except Israel".
According to authorities, changes are also being made to the images of the passport watermark. The new images to be added will include the image of Abu Saeed with outstretched arms, which is considered a symbol of the July 1999 uprising. Several existing images will also be removed, including the mausoleum of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and the Mujib Nagar monument.
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