UK court halts Chagos Islands handover to Mauritius just before signing: Here's why

A British court blocked the UK from transferring sovereignty over the Chagos Islands to Mauritius on Thursday (May 22), just hours before the agreement was set to be signed.

The High Court injunction halted a virtual signing ceremony for the deal, under which Britain would have ceded control of the Indian Ocean archipelago to Mauritius and then leased back the Diego Garcia military base for at least 99 years.

US officials under President Donald Trump, who were consulted during the negotiations, had approved the arrangement. But the agreement was delayed by last-minute talks over financial terms, according to officials familiar with the matter.

The deal also included a proposed resettlement fund for the original inhabitants of the Chagos Islands, many of whom were forcibly removed in the 1960s and 1970s to make way for the US base on Diego Garcia. However, details of the fund remain unclear and would not apply to Diego Garcia itself.

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The injunction was granted early Thursday after a legal challenge by two women representing displaced islanders. In his ruling, Judge Julian Goose ordered that the UK maintain jurisdiction over the British Indian Ocean Territory “until further order”. A court hearing was scheduled for later Thursday.

Chagos Islands dispute

The Chagos Islands have been at the center of a long-running dispute. Britain separated the archipelago from Mauritius in 1965, three years before granting the island nation independence. Up to 2,000 residents were evicted from the Chagos Islands to accommodate US military operations, and many later resettled in the UK

The United Nations and the International Court of Justice have called on Britain to return the territory to Mauritius, saying the separation was unlawful. Britain agreed in principle to the handover in October, but progress stalled due to a change of government in Mauritius and disputes over the lease payment.

With inputs from agencies