Peros Banhos
| Peros Banhos | ||
|---|---|---|
 |
||
| Waters | Indian Ocean | |
| archipelago | Chagos Archipelago | |
| Geographical location | 5 ° 20 ′ S , 71 ° 51 ′ E | |
|
||
| Number of islands | 32 | |
| Main island | Île du Coin | |
| Land area | 13 km² | |
| total area | 503 km² | |
| Residents | uninhabited | |
 |
||
Peros Banhos is an atoll in the Indian Ocean , which geographically belongs to the Chagos Archipelago . The islands of Peros Banhos include Grande Soeur , Île du Coin , Île Diamant and Île Yéyé , among others . Politically, the atoll belongs to the British Indian Ocean Territory .
The archipelago was discovered around 1500 by Afonso de Albuquerque , who also found Diego Garcia . It was later occupied by the French and administered from Mauritius . In the wake of the Napoleonic Wars it was given to Great Britain .
In 1965 the British leased Peros Banhos and other groups of islands in the Chagos Islands, such as Diego Garcia, to the USA for 50 years . The islanders ( Chagossians ) were then forcibly resettled and access to the atoll is strictly prohibited. The eastern part of the atoll, east of Moresby Island in the north and Fouquet Island in the south, is now part of the Peros Banhos Atoll Strict Nature Reserve .
- cards
Map of the Peros Banhos atoll
Peros Banhos Atoll Strict Nature Reserve
