Peñón de Vélez de la Gomera

Peñón de Vélez de la Gomera
	Peñón de Vélez de la Gomera,seen from the Moroccan coast in 2007.
Geography
Location	North African coast
Coordinates	35°10′20″N4°17′59″W/ 35.17222°N 4.29972°W
Adjacent to	Mediterranean Sea
Area	1.9 ha (4.7 acres)
Administration
	Spain
	Plazas de Soberanía

Peñón de Vélez de la Gomera(Spanish pronunciation:[peˈɲondeˈβeleθðelaɣoˈmeɾa];Arabic:حجر بديس,romanized:Hajar Badis) is a Spanishexclaveand rockytidal islandin the westernMediterranean Seaconnected to theMoroccanshore by a sandyisthmus.It is also connected to a smaller islet to the east, La Isleta, by a rocky isthmus. The tidal island was namedHajar Badis(Rock of Badis) and was connected to the town ofBadis.

Vélez de la Gomera,along with La Isleta, is a premodern overseas possession known as aplaza de soberanía.It is administered by theSpanish central government^[1]and has a population consisting only of a small number of Spanish military personnel.

Its border with Morocco is 80 m (260 ft) long, making it one of the shortest international borders in the world.

Geography

Peñón de Vélez de la Gomerais located 119 km (74 mi) southeast ofCeuta.It was a natural island in theAlboran Seauntil 1930, when a hugethunderstormwashed large quantities of sand into the short channel between the island and the African continent. The channel was turned into atombolo^[2]and the island became a peninsula,connected to the Moroccan coastby an 85 m (279 ft) long sandyisthmus,which is the world's shortest single land-border segment.^[3]With a length of 400 m (1,300 ft) northwest-southeast and a width of up to 100 m (330 ft), it covers about 1.9ha(4¾ acres).

History

PortugalandSpainpassed an agreement in 1496 in which they effectively established their zones of influence on theNorth Africancoast. As a result, Spain could occupy territory only east ofPeñón de Vélez.This restriction ended with theIberian Unionof Portugal and Spain in 1580 underPhilip IIafter the 1578Battle of Alcácer Quibir,when Spain started to take direct actions inMorocco,as in the occupation ofLarache.^[4]

In 1508, Spain launched a successful expedition under the command ofPedro Navarroto take thepeñónlocated nearBadis,held bypirateswho were constantly attacking and looting the coast of southern Spain.

In 1522, Spain lost thepeñónto a Moroccan Berber attack that resulted in the deaths of the entire Spanish garrison.Ali Abu Hassun,the newWattasidruler of Morocco in 1554, then gave thepeñónto theOttomantroops who had assisted him in gaining the throne.^[4]

The Ottomans used it as a base for corsairs operating in the region of theStrait of Gibraltar.TheSa'disultanAbdallah al-Ghalibwas alarmed by this activity, fearing that the Ottomans might use the town ofBadisas a base from which to undertake the conquest of Morocco. In 1564, he forced the Moroccans to evacuate the town and thepeñón,which he handed over to the Spaniards. The Moroccan population retired to thekasbahofSenada.^[5]

In 2012, the territorywas briefly assaultedby seven Moroccan activists belonging to theCommittee for the Liberation of Ceuta and Melilla,whose leader wasYahya Yahya.^[6]

Government

Peñón de Vélez de la Gomerais governed by direct rule fromMadrid.^[7]^[8]

Transportation

The territory is reached primarily by helicopter via a helipad located on the upper sections. A landing area is located on the south end near the land entrance toPeñón de Vélez de la Gomera.

References

^Ceberio Belaza, Mónica; Cembrero, Ignacio; González, Miguel (2012-09-17)."The last remains of the Spanish empire".EL PAÍS.Retrieved2020-07-31.
^"Historia de Peñón de Vélez de la Gomera".Ejercito de Tierra(in Spanish). Archived fromthe originalon 14 May 2009.Retrieved29 October2018.
^Lewis, Martin W. (30 Aug 2010)."The World's Shortest Border".GeoCurrents.Archived fromthe originalon 11 August 2018.Retrieved22 June2019.
^^a ^bKissling, Hans Joachim; Spuler, Bertold; et al. (29 October 1996).The Last Great Muslim Empires: History of the Muslim World.Translated by Bagley, F. R. C.Princeton, New Jersey:Markus Wiener Publishers. p. 103.ISBN 978-1-55876-112-4.Retrieved29 October2018– viaGoogle Books.
^Colin, G. S. (1986) [1960]."Bādis".InBearman, P.;Bianquis, Th.;Bosworth, C. E.;van Donzel, E.;Heinrichs, W. P.(eds.).Encyclopaedia of Islam.Vol. I (2nd ed.). Leiden, Netherlands:Brill Publishers.p. 859.doi:10.1163/1573-3912_islam_SIM_0995.ISBN 9004081143.
^Sánchez, Paqui (29 August 2012)."Cuatro activistas marroquíes intentan ocupar el Peñón de Vélez de la Gomera".El Mundo(in Spanish).
^"Moroccans eye Spanish enclave across tiny border".The National.July 16, 2017.Retrieved2020-07-31.
^"Europe:: Spain — The World Factbook - Central Intelligence Agency".cia.gov.Archived fromthe originalon May 10, 2017.Retrieved2020-08-01.

External links

Spanish Autonomous Communitiesat WorldStatesmen.org

[1] Ceberio Belaza, Mónica; Cembrero, Ignacio; González, Miguel (2012-09-17)."The last remains of the Spanish empire".EL PAÍS.Retrieved2020-07-31.

[2] "Historia de Peñón de Vélez de la Gomera".Ejercito de Tierra(in Spanish). Archived fromthe originalon 14 May 2009.Retrieved29 October2018.

[3] Lewis, Martin W. (30 Aug 2010)."The World's Shortest Border".GeoCurrents.Archived fromthe originalon 11 August 2018.Retrieved22 June2019.

[Kissling_103-4] Kissling, Hans Joachim; Spuler, Bertold; et al. (29 October 1996).The Last Great Muslim Empires: History of the Muslim World.Translated by Bagley, F. R. C.Princeton, New Jersey:Markus Wiener Publishers. p. 103.ISBN 978-1-55876-112-4.Retrieved29 October2018– viaGoogle Books.

[EI2-5] Colin, G. S. (1986) [1960]."Bādis".InBearman, P.;Bianquis, Th.;Bosworth, C. E.;van Donzel, E.;Heinrichs, W. P.(eds.).Encyclopaedia of Islam.Vol. I (2nd ed.). Leiden, Netherlands:Brill Publishers.p. 859.doi:10.1163/1573-3912_islam_SIM_0995.ISBN 9004081143.

[6] Sánchez, Paqui (29 August 2012)."Cuatro activistas marroquíes intentan ocupar el Peñón de Vélez de la Gomera".El Mundo(in Spanish).

[:0-7] "Moroccans eye Spanish enclave across tiny border".The National.July 16, 2017.Retrieved2020-07-31.

[8] "Europe:: Spain — The World Factbook - Central Intelligence Agency".cia.gov.Archived fromthe originalon May 10, 2017.Retrieved2020-08-01.

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v t e Autonomous communitiesofSpain
Autonomous communities	Andalusia Aragon Asturias Balearic Islands Basque Country Canary Islands Cantabria Castilla–La Mancha Castile and León Catalonia Extremadura Galicia La Rioja Community of Madrid Murcia Navarre Valencian Community
Autonomous cities	Ceuta Melilla
Plazas de soberanía	Alhucemas Chafarinas Vélez de la Gomera

v t e Outlying territories of European countries
Territories under Europeansovereigntybut closer to or on continents other than Europe (seeinclusion criteriafor further information).
Denmark	Greenland Faroe Islands
France	Clipperton Island French Guiana French Polynesia French Southern and Antarctic Lands Adélie Land Crozet Islands Île Amsterdam Île Saint-Paul Kerguelen Islands Scattered Islands in the Indian Ocean Guadeloupe Martinique Mayotte New Caledonia Réunion Saint Barthélemy Saint Martin Saint Pierre and Miquelon Wallis and Futuna
Netherlands	Aruba Caribbean Netherlands Bonaire Saba Sint Eustatius Curaçao Sint Maarten
Norway	Bouvet Island Peter I Island Queen Maud Land Svalbard
Portugal	Azores Madeira
Spain	Canary Islands Ceuta Melilla Plazas de soberanía Chafarinas Islands Peñón de Alhucemas Peñón de Vélez de la Gomera
United Kingdom	Anguilla Bermuda British Antarctic Territory British Indian Ocean Territory British Virgin Islands Cayman Islands Falkland Islands Montserrat Pitcairn Islands Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands Turks and Caicos Islands

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