Maldives President Abdulla Yameen was unhurt in a blast on his speedboat on Monday as it approached Male, the capital of the Indian Ocean archipelago, a senior aide told Reuters.

Yameen was returning from Saudi Arabia after completing the Haj pilgrimage, having flown in to the main international airport on an adjacent island, according to local reports.

"The president is unharmed," his spokesman Ibrahim Muaz told reporters, giving no further details about the incident.

Reporters were at the presidential jetty to receive Yameen, who had landed a few minutes earlier at the nearby Hulhule airport after a a visit to Saudi Arabia.

Witnesses said they saw an ambulance rush to the jetty and police immediately cordoned off the area.

(Channel News Asia)