FRENCH TERRITORY OF THE AFARS AND THE ISSAS

FRENCH TERRITORY OF THE AFARS AND THE ISSAS /
TERRITOIRE FRANÇAIS DES AFARS ET DES ISSAS (now DJIBOUTI)

Assal Lake.
Airmail. First stamp in a set of 3, issued on 25.10.1974.
Face value: 49 French Somaliland francs.
Design: Pierrette Lambert (b. 1928).
Printing: Photogravure.

Catalogs
- Michel No. 108.
- Scott No. C99.
- StampWorld No. 108.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 618.
- Yvert et Tellier No. PA 102.

The French Territory of the Afars and the Issas (French: Territoire français des Afars et des Issas) was the name given to present-day Djibouti between 1967 and 1977, while it was still an overseas territory of France. The area was formerly known as French Somaliland (Côte française des Somalis). In 1958, on the eve of neighboring Somalia's independence in 1960, a referendum was held in the territory to decide whether or not to join the Somali Republic or to remain with France. The referendum turned out in favour of a continued association with France. On June 27, 1977, in another referéndum, a 99.8% of the electorate supported disengagement from France, officially marking Djibouti's independence.

Lake Assal (Arabic: بحيرة عسل) is a crater lake in west-central Djibouti, at the western end of the Gulf of Tadjoura, touching the Dikhil region, at the top of the Great Rift Valley, about 120 km (75 mi) west of Djibouti City. It is a saline lake that lies 155 m (509 ft) below sea level in the Afar Triangle, making it the lowest point on land in Africa. There is no output from the lake and, due to high evaporation, the salinity level of its waters is 10 times higher than that of the sea, making it the third most saline body of water in the world. Its area is 54 km² (21 sq mi), its length is 19 km (12 mi) and its maximum width is 6.5 km (4 mi).