Bangladesh's transitional government has reinstated a clause in passports effectively barring travel to Israel following large-scale pro-Palestine demonstrations nationwide.

The Home Ministry issued an order on April 7 instructing the Department of Immigration and Passports to restore the clause, which makes Bangladesh's passports read "THIS PASSPORT IS VALID FOR ALL COUNTRIES OF THE WORLD EXCEPT ISRAEL," Deputy Secretary Nilima Afroz confirmed to Anadolu Agency on Sunday.

Md. Jahangir Alam Chowdhury, adviser for home affairs, signed the order, officially putting the decision into effect, Afroz said.

In 2021, the Sheikh Hasina government removed the phrase, citing alignment with international passport standards. The move was met with heavy public disapproval.

Hasina's administration, ousted in August following mass protests, faced accusations of acquiring Israeli spyware to monitor opposition figures, despite Bangladesh not recognising Israel.

Although officials insisted that travel to Israel remained banned, removal of the clause triggered criticism in the Muslim-majority country.

Calls to restore the clause intensified after the political shift last year and amid Israel's intensified attacks on Gaza.

On Saturday, Dhaka witnessed what was described as the country's largest pro-Palestine rally, a march for Gaza drawing hundreds of thousands.

The rally's declaration listed reinstating the "except Israel" clause as a primary demand.

Israeli carnage

Israel unilaterally ended the ceasefire in Gaza and resumed its genocidal war, killing 1,574 Palestinians.

Israel's killings since March took the total death toll during the carnage to nearly 51,000, a number revised to 62,000, mostly women and children.

During its carnage, Israel has reduced most of the blockaded enclave to ruins and displaced almost the entire population of the enclave.

It also has put the enclave under siege, blocking entry to food, water, medicine, electricity and other desperately needed humanitarian aid.

Last November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel is also facing a genocide case at the International Court of Justice over its ongoing war in the enclave.