The Andaman Islands are an archipelago of roughly 200 islands in the northeastern Indian Ocean, lying approximately 130 kilometres southwest of Myanmar’s Ayeyarwady Region. Together with the Nicobar Islands to the south, they form a maritime boundary between the Bay of Bengal to the west and the Andaman Sea to the east.
Most of the archipelago belongs to India as part of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands Union Territory, while the Coco Islands and Preparis Island fall under Myanmar’s Yangon Region. The islands are home to the Andamanese, a collection of indigenous tribes including the Jarawa and Sentinelese. While some islands can be visited with permits, others—most notably North Sentinel Island—are legally off limits. The Sentinelese remain largely hostile to outsiders and have had minimal contact with other peoples. The Indian Government and Coast Guard enforce an exclusion zone extending three nautical miles (5.6 kilometres) from the island to protect the tribe’s right to isolation and privacy.
