Dive resort operators on Malaysia's famous Sipadan island off Borneo have been told to move out by the end of the year to protect its environment as part of a bid to list the island as a World Heritage Site, a minister said today.

The five dive operators would be allowed to shift the the base of their operations to nearby islands such as Mabul and Kapalai and take divers on day trips to Sipadan.

The five-hectare (12-acre) island, which sits at the crown of a limestone spire rising hundreds of metres from the bed of the Celebes Sea, hosts a cornucopia of marine life that's been compared to Australia's Great Barrier Reef.

Deputy minister of eastern Sabah state Chong Kah Kiat, who is also state tourism minister, said he hoped the dive resort operators on the island would abide by the order to ensure Sipadan remained a top diving spot.

The move was also part of efforts by the Sabah government to get Sipadan gazetted as a World Heritage Sites to promote tourism in the state, Chong was quoted as saying by Bernama news agency.

"The operators have been given a deadline. The timeframe is sufficient for them to relocate. Next year, Sipadan island will be run by Sabah Parks. For divers, business will be as usual... divers will still go there but on regulated basis," Chong said.

Top 10 diving spots

Listed among the world's top 10 diving spots, the idyllic island became an international news focus in 2000 when 21 people including 12 foreigners were abducted by Philippines-based Muslim Abu Sayyaf rebels.

The Abu Sayyaf, which is believed to have ties to the al-Qaeda-linked Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) terrorist group responsible for deadly bombings in Indonesia, released the captives after large ransoms were reportedly paid.

The United States earlier this month issued a new terrorism warning against travelling to Malaysia, especially Sabah, following a new kidnapping last month of two Malaysians and an Indonesian in southern Philippine waters off Sabah's coast.

But Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi dismissed the warning and said Malaysia had beefed up security and did not foresee further kidnappings. - AFP