Kuria Muria Islands

Kuria Muria Islands or Jazā‘ir Khurīyā Murīyā, island group of Oman, situated 40 km (25 mi) off the country's southeastern coast in Kuria Muria Bay (an inlet of the Arabian Sea). Five islands comprise the group. Composed mostly of granite, the five rocky islets are the peaks of a submarine ridge. Al Ḩallānīyah is the largest and only inhabited island. Its few residents support themselves primarily through fishing.

Pirate raids in the early 19th century forced all of the archipelago’s inhabitants to flee. Ceded to Britain in 1854 by the sultan of Oman for a station of the Red Sea telegraph cable, the islands were returned to Oman in 1967. Area, 73 sq km (28 sq mi).