Britain’s government has been temporarily blocked from concluding its deal to transfer the Chagos Islands to Mauritius, PA Media reported, after an 11th-hour injunction by a High Court judge.

A ceremony transferring sovereignty of the British Indian Ocean Territory of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius was called off at the last moment after the High Court in London granted an injunction to islanders.

An 11-hour ruling from a British high court judge has temporarily blocked the country's plan to hand over the Chagos Islands in the remote Indian ocean to African nation of Mauritius.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer has finalized a pivotal agreement transferring sovereignty of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius. The islands, critical for their naval base on Diego Garcia, saw a temporary legal block before the agreement proceeded.