Starmer Signs Chagos Islands Deal After Court Throws Out Injunction

The legal action was brought by two Chagossian women who have criticized the lack of consultation with the community during the negotiations.

Aerial view of the Chagos Islands in the Indian Ocean, in an undated file photo. Alamy/PA

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer signed a deal surrendering sovereignty of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius, after a judge overturned a last-minute injunction that had blocked its finalization on Thursday.

The agreement allows London to keep control of a strategically important British–American air base on Diego Garcia, the largest island in the Indian Ocean archipelago, via a 99-year lease costing the UK some 3.4 billion pounds ($4.6 billion).