Bangladesh has reintroduced an “except Israel” inscription on passports, prohibiting its citizens from visiting the Jewish state, AFP reported on Sunday.

The phrase “valid for all countries except Israel” was present on passports of the Muslim-majority Asian country for decades until 2021.

However, authorities had issued a directive last week to restore the inscription, a deputy secretary in the Home Ministry, Nilima Afroze, was cited by the Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha (BSS) news agency as saying.