Resettlement of Île du Coin

Common card · No. 434529

On 16 February 2026 four Chagossians landed without permits on Île du Coin, in the Peros Banhos atoll of the Chagos Archipelago, intending to establish what they said would be a permanent settlement. The group was led by Misley Mandarin, who said he had been elected first minister of a Chagossian government-in-exile in December 2025, and was accompanied by the former Conservative MP Adam Holloway. The landing was a protest against the planned transfer of sovereignty over the islands from the United Kingdom to Mauritius. According to the organisers, it aimed to stop the ratification of the Agreement concerning the Chagos Archipelago including Diego Garcia, the 2025 treaty providing for the transfer, and the group's "Declaration of Return" demanded a binding referendum of Chagossians on their future. No Chagossian had lived on any of the islands since 1973, after the expulsion of the Chagossians. The British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT) authorities served removal notices on the four on 18...

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