Maldives ex-leader vows to fightback after vote chaos

COLOMBO: Exiled Maldives opposition leader Mohamed Nasheed vowed on Wednesday to keep up the pressure on the government after it deployed troops to remove his MPs from parliament, drawing a warning from Washington.

Nasheed admitted he had been unable to secure "outright victory" in his attempt to seize control of parliament by entering into a pact with the current president’s half-brother, former strongman president Maumoon Abdul Gayoom.

A vote of no confidence in the house speaker, intended to destabilise President Abdulla Yameen before elections next year, ended in defeat Monday when soldiers took away 13 opposition MPs and the rest walked out in protest.

The scenes, captured on camera and circulated on social media, prompted the US embassy to urge Male to "restore faith in democratic processes".