The Maldives' highest court has revoked an order to release nine high-profile political prisoners. It comes a day after President Abdulla Yameen declared a state of emergency and the arrest of two top justices.

The remaining three Supreme Court justices said in a statement they were rescinding the order to release the prisoners "in light of the concerns raised by the President". Yameen ordered the arrests Monday, hours after declaring a state of emergency. He called the original Supreme Court ruling a "coup". The crackdown is the latest in five years of democratic rollbacks under Yameen. China, the US, the UK, and India are advising their citizens not to travel to the Maldives because of the unrest.