The International Court of Justice (ICJ) begins hearings from Monday into the dispute over the future of the Chagos Islands.

Mauritius claims sovereignty over the British archipelago in the Indian ocean which hosts an important US military base on Diego Garcia, the largest of the 60 islands.

The Chagos are at the heart of a five-decade dispute, since the British decision to separate Mauritius from the archipelago in 1965 in exchange for independence.

The archipelago's entire population were evicted to Mauritius when the UK took control and some Chagossians are now hoping they will soon be allowed to return.

In June 2017, the United Nations decided by a vote to ask the ICJ based in the Hague in Netherlands to decide on the future of the Chagos Islands.

Navigating through this wave of sympathy, the leader of the Chagos Refugees Group, Olivier Bancoult, wants judges to come to a solution in favour of Chagossians.

"We are confident that the Judge will provide for a solution to this great injustice against us", Bancoult says.