Key keywords: Maldives police raid news outlet, President Mohamed Muizzu affair allegation, Dhiyares news raid, Maldives press freedom, Maldives anti-disinformation law, Maldives political controversy, independent media censorship Maldives, RSF Maldives press freedom index Local time on June 12, 2024, armed officers from the Maldives Police Service raided the headquarters of independent Maldivian news outlet Dhiyares in the capital city of Male, just 48 hours after the platform published an investigative report alleging that President Mohamed Muizzu had a years-long extramarital affair with a former senior female civil servant, and that the pair had improperly allocated public funds to cover personal travel and luxury purchases during Muizzu’s tenure as housing minister before he took office as president in 2023. During the 3-hour raid, police confiscated all of the outlet’s central servers, 12 work laptops belonging to reporters and editors, 7 personal mobile phones of staff present at the office, and all physical documentation related to the affair report. Four senior editors of Dhiyares were taken into police custody for questioning, and were released on bail 18 hours later with travel restrictions imposed, pending further investigation. The Attorney General’s Office of the Maldives issued a public statement hours after the raid, claiming that the Dhiyares report contained “deliberately fabricated false information” that “defames the head of state and undermines national public order”, adding that the raid was conducted in full compliance with the country’s 2021 Anti-Disinformation Act, which criminalizes the spread of content deemed harmful to state interests or individual reputation with penalties of up to 2 years in prison and fines of up to MVR 2 million (approximately USD 130,000). The raid has drawn widespread condemnation from international press freedom groups and local opposition parties. Reporters Without Borders (RSF) released a statement calling the action “a blatant attack on the Maldives’ already fragile press freedom”, noting that the country dropped 17 spots to rank 116th out of 180 countries in RSF’s 2024 World Press Freedom Index, due to repeated targeting of critical media outlets by the Muizzu administration. The Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), the country’s main opposition party, described the raid as “a clear sign of the government’s turn towards authoritarianism”, adding that “the administration has chosen to use police force to suppress uncomfortable truths instead of addressing the allegations of misconduct raised in the report.” Thousands of Maldivian social media users have shared posts supporting Dhiyares under the hashtag #SaveMaldivesPress, with many calling for full transparency from the president regarding the allegations raised in the report. As of press time, Dhiyares has stated that it stands by the accuracy of its reporting, and has submitted evidence supporting its allegations to the Maldives’ independent Anti-Corruption Commission for further review.