Iran to start building residential units in Abu Musa Island, asserting its ownership

News ID: 5293

Date: 22 October 2024 - 13:39

TABNAK, Oct, 22: Iran to start building 110 housing units in Abu Musa Island, southern Iran, the country’s National Land and Housing Organization (NLHO) announced on Tuesday.

Iran plans to launch a project including construction of 110 residential units in Abu Musa Island in the Persian Gulf.

“Surely, the island is an inseparable part of Iran’s territory and the country can decide to launch housing projects there under the national regulations,” Arsalan Maleki, the Managing Director of the NLHO said.

The approved construction order of the project has been delivered to the province and its implementation will begin soon, Maleki noted.

The official made the remarks just a few days after the United Arab Emirates (UAE) repeated baseless ownership claims on the southern Iranian island.

Maleki went on to say that the new houses will be allocated to local people and then to any applicants from across Iran.

During their first summit in Brussels, the European Union and the Persian Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) issued a joint statement on Wednesday, repeating allegations about Iran’s sovereignty over the three Persian Gulf islands -- Greater Tunb, Lesser Tunb, and Abu Musa.

The Persian Gulf islands of Abu Musa, the Greater and Lesser Tunbs have historically been part of Iran, proof of which can be found and corroborated by countless historical, legal, and geographical documents in Iran and other parts of the world. However, the United Arab Emirates has repeatedly laid claim to the islands.

The islands fell under British control in 1921 but on November 30, 1971, a day after British forces left the region and just two days before the UAE was to become an official federation, Iran’s sovereignty over the islands was restored.