The former president of the Maldives, Mohamad Nasheed, has been arrested for failing to turn up at his trial for illegally arresting a judge.
A spokesman for Mr Nasheed's party, Hamid Abdul Ghafoor, tweeted that Nasheed was "grabbed from protesting supporters" before being arrested and "taken away" from the southern atoll of Fares Mathoda.
"I also fear for his safety given the brutality shown by armed and covered police. We do not know where he is being taken," he told the BBC.
Nasheed resigned earlier this year, after which he claimed he was threatened to do so by rebellious security forces.
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