Four Chagossians return to islands in attempt to stop British transfer to Mauritius

Misley Mandarin, the leader of the group, at a protest in London last year. Photograph: ZUMA Press, Inc./Alamy

Four Chagos Islanders have landed on one of the archipelago’s atolls to establish what they say will be a permanent settlement, in an attempt to complicate a British plan to transfer the territory to Mauritius.

The Mauritius attorney general said the move was a publicity stunt designed to create conflict over a 2025 agreement with Britain on handing over sovereignty of the British Indian Ocean Territory, which is opposed by some Chagossians who accuse Mauritius of decades of neglect. Mauritius has denied the accusations.