Indian explorer declares himself 'king' of unclaimed land in North Africa, invites others for citizenship

An Indian adventurer declared himself the ruler of an unclaimed strip of land in North Africa between Sudan and Egypt, and is encouraging people to apply for citizenship, according to media reports.

Suyash Dixit, a computer engineer from Indore, dodged terrorists in the barren desert and undertook a perilous six-hour drive to declare himself king of the ‘Kingdom of Dixit’ in Bir Tawil, an 800-square mile tract, that according to a  Fox News  report, was declared by Jeopardy champion Ken Jennings as being “there for the taking if anyone was up to the challenge”.

The stretch of land is believed to be the largest area unclaimed by any recognised nation, the report said. Bir Tawil’s existence is the result of a border drawn up by the British in 1899.

“The route that I took is under Egyptian military (it is an international border) and is an area of terrorists so military have ‘shoot at sight’ orders,” The Telegraph  quoted Dixit as saying.

“But, if your bucket list ideas are not scary enough then they are not worth trying! You need permissions to even enter the route to this place. We [had> three conditions; no photos of military areas, be back in a single day and no valuables,” Dixit said, according to the report.

He even designed a flag — red and yellow with a crest in the centre — for the newly-formed country, International Business Times  reported. He named himself King Suyash I, decided the capital city should be Suyashpur, and proclaimed the national animal to be a lizard, as it was the only species he saw around, the report added.

Dixit’s declaration through a Facebook post starts as follows: I, Suyash Dixit, first of my name and the protector of the realm, declare myself as the king of “Kingdom of Dixit”. I call myself, King Suyash First from today. I declare this unclaimed land of Bir Tawil as my country from now to the eternity of time. I pledge to continue to work for the prosperity of my people of the country and this motherland.

Following is the rest of the post formally announcing the kingdom: