A Look At Diego Garcia, Island With U.s.-u.k. Base Targeted By Iran

LONDON — Iran has launched missiles astatine Diego Garcia, an Indian Ocean land that is location to a strategical U.K.-U.S. subject base.

Britain condemned “Iran’s reckless attacks” aft nan unsuccessful effort to deed nan base. It’s unclear really adjacent nan missiles came to nan island, which is astir 2,500 miles from Iran.

Here is what to cognize astir nan distant base.

U.S. operations hub

The U.S. has described nan Diego Garcia guidelines arsenic “an each but indispensable platform” for information operations successful nan Middle East, South Asia and East Africa.

Home to astir 2,500 mostly American personnel, it has supported U.S. subject operations from Vietnam to Iraq and Afghanistan. In 2008, nan U.S. acknowledged it besides had been utilized for clandestine rendition flights of coercion suspects.

Last twelvemonth nan U.S. deployed respective nuclear-capable B-2 Spirit bombers to Diego Garcia amid an aggravated airstrike run targeting Yemen’s Houthi rebels.

Britain initially refused to fto nan guidelines beryllium utilized for U.S.-Israeli attacks connected Iran, but aft Iran responded pinch strikes connected its neighbors, nan U.K. said American bombers could usage Diego Garcia and different British guidelines to target Iran’s rocket sites. On Friday, nan British authorities said that includes sites being utilized to onslaught ships successful nan Strait of Hormuz.

The U.K. says nan British bases tin beryllium utilized only for “specific and constricted protect operations.”

But Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said connected X that Prime Minister Keir Starmer “is putting British lives successful threat by allowing UK bases to beryllium utilized for aggression against Iran.”

Iran has a self-imposed limit connected its ballistic rocket program, limiting nan scope to 1,240 miles. Diego Garcia is good extracurricular that range. U.S. officials, however, agelong person alleged that Iran’s abstraction programme could let it to build intercontinental ballistic missiles

A contested land chain

Diego Garcia is portion of nan Chagos Archipelago, a concatenation of much than 60 islands successful nan mediate of nan Indian Ocean, astir 1,000 miles from nan extremity of India. The islands person been nether British power since 1814, erstwhile they were ceded by France.

In nan 1960s and 1970s, Britain evicted arsenic galore arsenic 2,000 group from Diego Garcia truthful nan U.S. subject could build nan guidelines there.

In caller years, disapproval has mounted complete Britain’s power of nan archipelago and nan measurement it forcibly displaced nan section population. The United Nations and nan International Court of Justice person urged Britain to extremity its “colonial administration” of nan islands and transportation sovereignty to Mauritius.

Trump has criticized U.K. plans for nan island

After agelong negotiations, nan British authorities struck a woody past twelvemonth pinch Mauritius to manus complete sovereignty of nan islands. Britain would past lease backmost nan Diego Garcia guidelines for astatine slightest 99 years.

The U.K. authorities says that will safeguard nan early of nan base, which is susceptible to ineligible challenge. But nan statement has been criticized by galore guidance politicians successful Britain who opportunity giving up nan islands puts them astatine consequence of interference by China and Russia.

Some of nan displaced Chagos islanders and their descendants besides person challenged nan deal, saying they were not consulted and it leaves them unclear connected whether they will ever beryllium allowed to return to their homeland.

The U.S. management initially welcomed nan deal, but President Trump successful January changed his mind, calling it “an enactment of GREAT STUPIDITY.”

Starmer’s first refusal to fto nan U.S. onslaught Iran from Diego Garcia further angered Trump, who said this period that “the U.K. has been very, very uncooperative pinch that stupid land that they have.”

Passage of nan U.K.-Mauritius woody done Britain’s Parliament has been put connected clasp until U.S. support tin beryllium regained.

Lawless writes for nan Associated Press. AP writer Jon Gambrell successful Dubai contributed to this report.