Hanish Islands

The Hanisch Islands (Arabic جزر حنيش Dschuzur Hanisch, DMG ǧuzur Hanis ) are an island group in the Red Sea. Much of the archipelago is part of Yemen, 1995/1996, the entire archipelago of Eritrea has been claimed, which led to a conflict between the States with a military dimension. After long negotiations, the islands in 1998, awarded to the Yemen by an international court of arbitration from a few smaller ones that are now part of Eritrea.

Geography

The largest island of the group is located in the north island Zuqar, followed by Great Hanish Iceland ( Dschazīrat al - Hanisch al - Kabīr ) in the south and Little Hanish Iceland ( Dschazīrat al - Hanisch as- Saghir ) between the two largest. The remaining islands are much smaller.

History

Originally Hanisch Islands were part of the Ottoman Empire and were greeted by his successor, Turkey, claimed. From 1923 to 1941, however, were managed by the Italian colony of Eritrea. After the escape of the Italian colonial troops, the islands were by the British, in turn, managed from Eritrea. Since the 1970s, the islands of Yemen and Ethiopia, which had annexed Eritrea in 1961, were claimed. Some of the islands Hanisch served in the freedom struggle of Eritrea against Ethiopia as a supply base and starting point for attacks on the mainland.

From the independence of South Yemen in 1967 until the unification with North Yemen were among the islands of the People's Democratic Republic of Yemen, since 1990, then to Yemen. After Eritrea gained independence in 1991, had tried the country in 1995 to conquer Hanisch Islands by force, but this failed.