Maldives president declares state of emergency following discovery of arms, explosive

Maldives Attorney General Mohamed Anil speaks during a press conference in Male, Maldives, Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2015. The president of the Maldives Yameen Abdul Gayoom has declared a state of emergency that will curtail key rights of citizens for 30 days. (AP Photo/Mohamed Sharuhaan) (The Associated Press)

Police and Maldives National Defense Force (MNDF) personnel cordon off an area suspecting an explosive inside the engine compartment of a parked broken car in Male, Maldives, Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2015. The same was later confirmed to be a hoax call.The president of the Maldives declared a state of emergency on Wednesday that sharply curtails key rights of citizens for 30 days following an explosion on his speedboat and the discoveries of a homemade bomb near his residence and a weapons cache. (AP Photo/Mohamed Sharuhaan) (The Associated Press)

The president of the Maldives has declared a state of emergency that will curtail key rights of citizens for 30 days.

The declaration by President Yameen Abdul Gayoom on Wednesday follows the discovery of a weapons cache and an explosive device apparently targeting the president.

Attorney General Mohamed Anil announced that the decision was made to safeguard public safety.

Gayoom was unhurt by a blast in his speedboat on Sept. 28 which the government called an assassination attempt.

The U.S. FBI, which investigated the blast, said it found no evidence that it was caused by a bomb.