U.N. to U.K.: Give up 'unlawful' control of Indian Ocean territory

The U.N. is calling for the U.K. to relinquish control of what has been referred to as its "last remaining colony in Africa" — the Chagos Islands, an archipelago in the Indian Ocean — "as rapidly as possible."

The International Court of Justice, the U.N.'s principal judiciary body, reached the conclusion after a 13-1 vote on Monday, deeming the United Kingdom's rule of the islands unlawful. The ruling was an advisory, not a binding judgment.

British control of the Chagos Islands didn't begin concurrently with the ever-expanding British Empire, but came much later in 1965. Ironically, the colonization process began as another country — neighboring island Mauritius — was gaining its independence from the British crown. Mauritius claims that the U.K. offered independence for the nation in exchange for the Chagos Islands.

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After taking control, the British forced Chagossians to leave, ultimately displacing 1,500 people — mostly to Mauritius, where Chagossians often claim they are treated as second-class citizens — in order to create space for a military base for the United States, which saw it as a strategic location during the Cold War era. In 2016, the U.S. extended its lease for the base until 2036, though it's unclear if the U.N. would expect the U.S. to abandon its post, as well, with the court stating only that "all member states are under an obligation to cooperate" with the decolonization process.

Olivier Bancoult, the leader of the Chagos Refugee group, called the court's vote "a great victory" for the Chagossian people. But the British are determined to maintain its presence on the archipelago for defense reasons, arguing that its facilities "help protect people here in Britain and around the world from terrorist threats."