An Indian adventurer has declared himself the ruler of an unclaimed strip of land between Egypt and Sudan.
“It was an epic journey,” Suyash Dixit wrote in a November Facebook post about his trip to this barren no man’s land. “We saw pure sand dunes, rocky hills, and canyons on our way.”
Declared “The Kingdom of Dixit,” this largely uninhabited 2,060-square kilometre parcel of parched earth is better known as Bir Tawil. Unclaimed due to an 1899 British cartographical error, it is one of only two parts of the planet that is not part of a sovereign state (the other, Marie Byrd Land, is located in Antarctica). Egypt, however, maintains a military presence in the area.
And while self-proclaimed “King Suyash First” is now accepting foreign investment and citizenship applications, his will likely remain a kingdom of one.
“It’s actually not legal,” Georgetown University professor of government and foreign service Anthony Clark Arend explained to CTV’s Your Morning on Tuesday. “I feel for the guy, because it’s a wonderful gesture, but no: only states can claim territory under international law.”
