Group of islands in the Arabian Sea about 50 miles south of The Sultanate of Oman, of which they are part.
Mostly barren rock, the largest of the group, Hallaniyat itself, supports a small fishing community ruled by the local Wali.
The islands were used by the British in the 16th Century as a base for their guano mining operations.
They boast the largest nesting population of green turtles in the world; the only non-migratory population of humpback whales so far discovered and some of the finest coral reefs in the Indian Ocean.