A letter, allegedly issued by former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, reportedly attributed her ouster after 15 years in power to her refusal to cede control of St Martin’s island in the Bay of Bengal to the United States.
St Martin’s Island is also known locally as “Narikel Zinzira” or “Coconut Island” or ‘Daruchini Dwip’ or Cinnamon Island.
It an area of just 3 square kilometres. It is located in the northeastern part of the Bay of Bengal. Saint Martin’s is located about 9 km south of the tip of the Cox’s Bazar-Teknaf peninsula, and forms the southernmost part of Bangladesh.
It is also about 8 km west of the northwest coast of Myanmar, at the mouth of the Naf River.
It is Bangladesh’s sole coral island.
The island was once an extension of the Teknaf peninsula but was separated due to the submergence of a portion of the peninsula.
In 1974, Bangladesh and Myanmar reached an agreement that the coral island would be a part of Bangladeshi territory.
