The Benin–Niger boundary extends for 282 kilometers, following the Mekrou River northeastwards for 148 kilometers from the tripoint with Burkina Faso to the junction with the Niger River, and then along the Niger southeastwards for 134 kilometers to the tripoint with Nigeria. Benin and Niger achieved independence from French rule in 1960, inheriting an internal boundary established by France in 1938. Uncertainty over the precise location of the boundary within the river channels led the parties to submit the question to the International Court of Justice in 2002. The Court concluded that, based on administration of the rivers prior to independence, the boundary in the Niger follows the main navigable channel of the river as it existed in 1960, and the boundary in the Mekrou follows the median line between the banks. The Court also clarified sovereignty over a number of islands in the Niger River.