Moroni: The neighbouring French island of Mayotte is set to expel migrants, prompting a diplomatic row. The Comoros, an archipelago in the Indian Ocean, issued a warning on Friday that it would not accept the migrants.

Next week, Operation Wuambushu ("Take Back") is anticipated to be launched by Mayotte authorities to evict illegal immigrants who have taken up residence in the island's slums.

Those without documentation will be returned to Anjouan, a Comoran island 70 kilometres (45 miles) away. The French government's operation in Mayotte is not something that the Comoros intend to accept exiles from.

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The planned action, according to Msaidie, violates both "the spirit and the letter" of bilateral agreements. Mayotte has a population of about 350,000 people, with approximately 50% of them being foreigners, mostly Comorans.

Gerald Darmanin, the French interior minister, confirmed the operation would take place on Friday but would not specify when it would begin. To deal with "criminal gangs," he claimed that 1,800 police officers were already in Mayotte.

Approximately 2,500 individuals from the judicial, medical, and law enforcement sectors have been mobilised overall, according to a source with direct knowledge of the situation.

Moroni had previously urged Paris to cancel the operation's plans, which were first revealed in February by the French satirical publication Le Canard enchaine.

Anissi Chamsidine, the governor of Anjouan, claimed that the island could not handle the violence "created from Mayotte by the French state." Azali Assoumani, the president of the Comoros, told AFP last week that he hoped the plan would be scrapped but admitted he lacked "the means to stop the operation through force. Up until 1975, Mayotte and the three islands that make up the modern Comoros were French colonies.

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Grande Comore, Moheli, and Anjouan islands declared themselves to be a separate nation, the Union of the Comoros, following an independence referendum.

But the Comoros, who still claim the island, rejected Mayotte's decision to remain a French overseas territory and later a French department.

With 80% of the population living below the poverty line and high rates of social delinquency, it is France's poorest department.

However, it also benefits from French infrastructure and welfare assistance, which has encouraged a migration wave from the Comoros, with many migrants risking their lives to make the perilous crossing on rickety boats used by smugglers.

In order to stop the flow, France intensified its efforts in 2019 by bolstering air-surveillance-supported sea patrols.

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Earlier this month, civil society organisations in the Comoros urged international organisations to intervene, stating that Operation Wuambushu was a "massacre waiting to happen" and had the support of French President Emmanuel Macron.

Recent weeks have seen intense negotiations between Moroni and Paris, increasing the likelihood of a last-minute agreement.