Chafarinas Islands, Mediterranean archipelago near Melilla, Spain
The Chafarinas Islands form a small archipelago off the coast of Melilla and consist of three islets named Congreso, Isabel II, and Rey, covering a combined area of just over half a square kilometer (0.2 square miles). These rocky islands rise from the Mediterranean Sea and sit roughly 4 kilometers (2.5 miles) from the North African coast.
Spain secured control of the islands in 1848 by sending a warship from Málaga before French forces could arrive. Since then, the islets have served as a military outpost and remain the subject of territorial claims by Morocco.
The middle island bears the name Isabel II and houses a small garrison with a church dedicated to Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception. This islet hosts the few permanent residents of the island group, while the other two remain uninhabited.
Visitors need special permission to enter the islands, as they are both militarily used and under strict nature protection. Those granted access can only visit Isabel II, while the two other islets remain closed.
The island group hosts the second-largest colony of Audouin's gulls in the Mediterranean region. Additionally, between 800 and 1,000 pairs of Scopoli's shearwaters nest here each year in rock crevices.
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