Maldives President Mohamed Muizzu’s political party has swept parliamentary elections in a strong endorsement of his pro-China foreign policy.

The president-elect of the Maldives says he's sticking to his campaign promise to remove Indian military personnel stationed in the archipelago state, promising he will initiate the process.

Jailed former Maldives President Abdulla Yameen has been transferred from prison to house arrest, fulfilling the campaign promise of his party candidate who won the presidential election runoff.

Media in the Maldives say opposition candidate Mohamed Muiz, who supports closer ties between the Indian Ocean archipelago and China, won the presidential runoff on Saturday with more than 53% of the vote.

India has announced a $100 million line of credit to the Maldives to support development projects.

Many of the 38 members recognized by the United Nations as small island developing states are known for their stunning coral reefs, pristine beaches and dire imperilment by climate change.

Police in the Maldives say an explosion that wounded former President Mohamed Nasheed and four others including a British national was an act of terrorism and they are attempting to identify four possible suspects.

Police say the Maldives’ first democratically elected president and current Parliament Speaker Mohamed Nasheed has been injured in a blast near his home.

Presidential spokesman Ibrahim Hood said Tuesday that President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih has received a request from Sri Lanka to look into the possibility of allowing such burials. There was no immediate confirmation from Sri Lanka of such a request. Sri Lankan prisons are highly congested, with more than 26,000 inmates crowded in facilities with a capacity of 10,000. Unrest has been growing, with prisoners demanding better facilities and care as COVID-19 cases increase. — Taiwan has set a goal to vaccinate 60% of its population with a COVID-19 vaccine, or 15 million people, a health official said Tuesday.

The island will prioritize frontline health workers and essential personnel to receive the vaccine first, Yang said. The officials spoke Monday at a George Washington University Hospital event Monday to launch the vaccination of health care workers in the nation’s capital. ___TORONTO — Canada has administered its first doses of COVID-19 vaccine. Ontario received 6,000 doses of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine Sunday night and plans to give them to about 2,500 health-care workers. Andrew Cuomo called the first shot given in the state’s campaign to vaccinate front line health care workers.