Two women born on the Chagos Islands are seeking to take the British government to court over a proposed deal to transfer sovereignty of the disputed Indian Ocean archipelago to Mauritius. Lawyers for the two women argued Monday that it was unlawful to exclude Chagossians from deciding the future of the tropical archipelago, home to a strategically important UK-US naval and bomber base. The UK government announced in October that it intends to hand the Chagos Islands to Mauritius though Britain would retain control of Diego Garcia, the largest island where the military base is located. But negotiations have stalled, pending agreement from US President Donald Trump's government. Britain evicted hundreds of people from the remote islands in the 1960s and 1970s so the US military could build the base on Diego Garcia. Many of the islanders were relocated to the UK and have faced legal challenges returning to their birthplace. Bernadette Dugasse and Bertrice Pompe, both British citize