Protests erupted in Bangladesh over the removal of Israel’s name from e-passports.
Bangladesh has clarified that the travel ban to Israel remains in place but only the e-passport has been changed to maintain international standards.
News has been circulating in the media and on social media since yesterday that Bangladesh has lifted its travel ban for its citizens to Israel and has also changed the words on its passport.
However, a statement issued by the Bangladesh Foreign Ministry on Sunday clarified this.
The statement said, “It seems that this misunderstanding has arisen from the new e-passport booklet which does not contain the words ‘all countries except Israel’.”
Bangladesh’s news website BDNews24 also reported a statement by Interior Minister Asadulzaman Khan Kamal yesterday in which he said, “This has been done to maintain international standards, and No change in policy.
At the same time, however, he said, “No country uses these words anymore. A visa is required to travel to any country.”
Explaining this, the Foreign Ministry statement said, “These words have been coined to maintain Bangladesh’s e-passport in line with international standards.”
A statement from Bangladesh’s foreign ministry said the government had strongly condemned Israel’s use of force against Gaza.
It should be noted that a large protest rally was held in Bangladesh against other countries against the Israeli bombing of Gaza.