No girls allowed: Japan's men-only island gets UNESCO nod

A view of Okinoshima island, which was inscribed at the 41st session of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee held in Poland on July 9. - AFP

TOKYO (AFP) - A men-only island in Japan where women are banned and male visitors must bathe naked in the sea before visiting its shrine, has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage site.

The tiny landmass of Okinoshima is permanently manned by a Shinto priest who prays to the island's goddess, in a tradition that has been kept up for centuries.