Profile of Leila on Famous Like Me

Leila also refers to a chess engine. See Leila (chess).

The Isla Perejil (Parsley Island, Arabic: Leila, "night") is a small, rocky island located in the Strait of Gibraltar, 200m off the coast of Morocco, 5km from Ceuta. The island is a plaza de soberanía of Spain, although it is claimed by Morocco. Spain bases its claim on its being missing from Morocco's independence treaty.

In 1415 Portugal conquered the island. Portugal then became united with Spain from 1580-1640. The island has been under Spanish control since 1668.

Sovereignty

The island's sovereignty is in dispute between Morocco and Spain. The islet was never mentioned in the Morocco's treaty of independence from Spain which is the cause of the current dispute.

The vast majority of Spaniards and Moroccans had not heard of the island, until July 11, 2002 when a group of Moroccan soldiers set up base on the islet. The Moroccan government said that they were there to monitor illegal immigration; later, after protests from the Spanish government, the soldiers were replaced by Moroccan navy cadets who installed a fixed base on the island. This further angered the Spanish, and both countries restated their claims to the islet. Spain was fully supported by almost all the European Union member states, with the exception of an initial cold shoulder from France. On the morning of July 18, Operation Recuperar Soberanía (Recover Sovereignty), was lauched at a cost of almost one million Euro. The operation was successful and the Moroccan navy cadets were dislodged from the island without offering any resistance to the Spanish commando attack force, Grupo de Operaciones Especiales. The operation was launched in conjunction with the Spanish Navy and Spanish Air Force. The captured Moroccans were transferred by helicopter to the headquarters of the Guardia Civil in Ceuta, from where they were transported to the Moroccan border. Over the course of the same day the Spanish commandos were replaced on the island by members of the Spanish Legion, who remained on the island until Morocco, after mediation by the United States, agreed to return to the status quo that existed previously. The islet is now, once again, deserted.

The Moroccan invasion was viewed by the Spanish as a way for the Moroccans to test the waters in regards to Spain's appetite to defend its remaining North African posessions. The swift and overwhelming use of force to retake this strategically unimportant and uninhabited islet demonstrated Spain's desire to retain its North Africa foothold.

Isla Perejil has no permanent human population. Goats are pastured there, and the Moroccan government expressed worries that smugglers and terrorists were using the island. It has been suggested that the Moroccan "mafia" uses the island for illegal immigration purposes.

The word Perejil is thought not to be derived from the plant name but to be a misderivation of "Perez Gil", the names of an owner/conqueror.

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