The Scattered Islands in the Indian Ocean (french: Îles Éparses or ''Îles Éparses de l'océan Indien'') consist of four small coral islands, an

atoll An atoll () is a ring-shaped island, including a coral rim that encircles a lagoon partially or completely. There may be coral islands or cays on the rim. Atolls are located in warm tropical or subtropical oceans and seas where corals can ...

, and a

reef A reef is a ridge or shoal of rock, coral or similar relatively stable material, lying beneath the surface of a natural body of water. Many reefs result from natural, abiotic component, abiotic processes—deposition (geology), deposition of ...

in the

Indian Ocean The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or ~19.8% of the water on Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia to the east. To the south it is bounded by ...

, and have constituted the 5th district of the

French Southern and Antarctic Lands The French Southern and Antarctic Lands (french: Terres australes et antarctiques françaises, TAAF) is an Overseas Territory (french: Territoire d'outre-mer or ) of France. It consists of: # Adélie Land (), the French claim on the continen ...

(TAAF), though sovereignty over some or all of the Islands is contested by Madagascar, Mauritius, and the Comoros. None of the islands have ever had a permanent population. Two of the islands— Europa and Juan de Nova—and the Bassas da India atoll lie in the Mozambique Channel west of Madagascar, while a third island, Tromelin, lies about east of Madagascar and the Glorioso Islands lies about northwest of Madagascar. Also in the Mozambique Channel is the '' Banc du Geyser'', a mostly submerged reef considered a part of the Glorioso Islands by France and the Comoros. The islands have been classified as

nature reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or ...

s. Except for Bassas da India, they all support

meteorological stations Meteorology is a branch of the atmospheric sciences (which include atmospheric chemistry and physics) with a major focus on weather forecasting. The study of meteorology dates back millennia, though significant progress in meteorology did not ...

: those on the Glorioso Islands, Juan de Nova, and Europa Island are automated. The station on Tromelin Island, in particular, provides warning of cyclones threatening

Madagascar Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East Africa ...

Mauritius Mauritius ( ; french: Maurice, link=no ; mfe, label=Mauritian Creole, Moris ), officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean about off the southeast coast of the African continent, east of Madagascar. It incl ...

, or

Réunion Réunion (; french: La Réunion, ; previously ''Île Bourbon''; rcf, label= Reunionese Creole, La Rényon) is an island in the Indian Ocean that is an overseas department and region of France. It is located approximately east of the island ...

. Each of the islands, except ''Banc du Geyser'' and Bassas da India, has an airstrip of more than .

Overview

Individual islands

* Bassas da India **Ten unnamed rock islets * Europa Island **Île Europa **Eight unnamed rock islets * Glorioso Islands **'' Banc du Geyser'' **Grande Glorieuse **Île du Lys **South Rock **Verte Rocks (three islets) **Wreck Rock **Three unnamed islets * Juan de Nova Island * Tromelin Island

Administration

Since January 3, 2005, the Îles Éparses have been administered on behalf of the French state by the senior administrator of the

(''TAAF'' — ''les Terres Australes et Antarctiques Françaises''), based in

. The Îles Éparses had previously been under the administration of the

prefect Prefect (from the Latin ''praefectus'', substantive adjectival form of ''praeficere'': "put in front", meaning in charge) is a magisterial title of varying definition, but essentially refers to the leader of an administrative area. A prefect's ...

of Réunion since the independence of

in 1960. France maintains a military garrison of around 14 troops on each of the islands in the Mozambique Channel that are claimed by Madagascar. The Glorioso Islands are also claimed by the Comoros, while Mauritius claims Tromelin Island. France has an exclusive economic zone (EEZ) of 200 nautical miles around each of the small islands in the Îles Éparses, which together with the EEZ claims for the islands of

Mayotte Mayotte (; french: Mayotte, ; Shimaore language, Shimaore: ''Maore'', ; Bushi language, Kibushi: ''Maori'', ), officially the Department of Mayotte (french: Département de Mayotte), is an Overseas France, overseas Overseas departments and regi ...

and

totals more than one million square kilometres in the western Indian Ocean. There is considerable overlap of the EEZ with the neighbouring states.

Sovereignty dispute

, and the Comoros dispute France's sovereignty over these islands. Mauritius claims Tromelin and states that the island, discovered by France in 1722, was not ceded by the Treaty of Paris in 1814.

claims sovereignty over the Glorioso Islands (including Banc du Geyser), though the islands were never a part of the Malagasy Protectorate, having been a part of the Colony of Mayotte and dependencies, then a part of the French Comoros that had become a separately administered colony from Madagascar in 1946. The Comoros also claims the Glorioso Islands (including Banc du Geyser), as a part of the disputed French region of

. Furthermore, Madagascar has also claimed Bassas da India, Europa, and Juan de Nova since 1972, and a 1979 United Nations resolution (without binding force) demanded the cession of these islands to Madagascar.

Seychelles Seychelles (, ; ), officially the Republic of Seychelles (french: link=no, République des Seychelles; Creole: ''La Repiblik Sesel''), is an archipelagic state consisting of 115 islands in the Indian Ocean. Its capital and largest city, ...

claimed a part of the Scattered Islands too before the signing of the

France–Seychelles Maritime Boundary Agreement The France–Seychelles Maritime Boundary Agreement is a 2001 treaty between France and Seychelles which delimits the maritime boundary between Seychelles and the uninhabited Glorioso Islands which are claimed by France.Anderson, Ewan W. (2003) ...

References

External links