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1 Strongman concedes: Maldives strongman President Yameen Abdul Gayoom conceded that he lost Sunday’s election to his challenger, longtime lawmaker Ibrahim Mohamed Solih, in a speech broadcast live on television Monday. Yameen congratulated Solih and said, “I know I have to step down now.” The concession and the results were a surprise to Maldives’ opposition, who had feared Yameen would rig the vote in his favor. Since getting elected in 2013, Yameen had cracked down on political dissent, jailing rivals — including his half brother and the Maldives’ first democratically elected president — and Supreme Court justices. Voter turnout in the nation of 400,000 people was 89.2 percent.