In a new twist, the Immigration Department has now declared that they have "just now" blacklisted ousted prime minister Najib Abdul Razak and his wife Rosmah Mansor.

The turnabout came more than two hours after Immigration Department director-general Mustafar Ali has told Malaysiakini that the duo were not blacklisted for the moment, after our checks of the department website in the early hours of the morning stated they were.

"Immigration Department wishes to confirm that Dato Sri Najib Tun Abdul Razak and Datin Sri Rosmah Mansor have just been blacklisted from leaving the country," read the Department statement on Facebook.

Checks on their status with the Immigration Department's Travel Status Enquiry System (SSPI), using their IC numbers now return the result "Sila rujuk ke pejabat imigresen terdekat" (Please refer to the nearest immigration office) in red letters.

The database is still unaccessible locally, as it had been since yesterday and Malaysiakini has had to use an overseas proxy to conduct the checks.

In a tweet, Najib himself confirmed that he, and his family, have been blacklisted from travelling aboard.

"I've just been informed that the Immigration Department is not allowing me and my family (from travelling) abroad. I respect the directive and will be with my family in the country," he tweeted