Bangladesh's foreign policy towards the Middle East has not changed. The ban on Bangladeshi passport holders traveling to Israel remains unchanged.
This was stated in a statement issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Sunday (May 23) afternoon.
The Bangladesh government has not deviated from its position on Israel and Bangladesh stands firm on its long-term position in this regard.
The statement said the e-passport issued by the Israeli Foreign Ministry had recently drawn the attention of the Bangladesh Foreign Ministry on Twitter, welcoming the lifting of the travel ban on Israel. This confusion has emerged from the new e-passport book which does not contain the impression that Bangladesh has moved away from its previous position after the removal of ‘all countries except Israel’.
This line has been removed to maintain the international standard of Bangladeshi e-passport.
The Bangladesh government has condemned the recent atrocities by Israeli occupying forces on the grounds of Al-Aqsa Mosque and in Gaza. Recognizing the eastern border of 1967 and East Jerusalem as the capital of the Palestinian state, Bangladesh demanded a reiteration of its policy position on a two-state solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict in the light of the UN resolution.
It is to be noted that the passport of Bangladesh used to say 'This passport is valid for all countries of the world except Israel'. Now the new e-passport has been amended to say 'This passport is valid for all countries of the world'.
Tel Aviv has expressed its gratitude and satisfaction to Dhaka for removing the word 'except Israel' (from Israel) from Bangladeshi passports. Although there is no diplomatic relationship between the two countries.
In a tweet, Gilad Cohen, deputy director general for the Asia-Pacific region at the Israeli Foreign Ministry, expressed satisfaction with the issue.
He described the removal of the word "except Israel" from Bangladeshi passports as "big news".