Gaza

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Gaza
Image:Gaza-City.jpg Gaza skyline
Arabic	غزة
Founded in	15th Century BCE
Government	City (from 1993)
Also Spelled	Ghazzah (officially) Gaza City (unofficially)
Governorate	Gaza
Coordinates	31°25′N 34°40′E / 31.417, 34.667Coordinates: 31°25′N 34°40′E / 31.417, 34.667
Population	409,680 (2006)
Jurisdiction	151,023 dunams (151.0 km²)
Head of Municipality	Majid Abu Ramadan

Gaza (Arabic: غزة transliteration: Ġazzah; Hebrew: עזה‎ Azzah) is the largest city within the Gaza Strip and within the Palestinian territories. The city, which has a population of approximately 400,000, has been inhabited since 3000BC^{[citation needed]} and is frequently termed "Gaza City" in order to distinguish it from the larger Gaza Strip.

Contents 1 History 1.1 Ancient 1.2 Coming of Islam 1.3 Modern 2 People and culture 3 Economy 4 Attractions 5 Transport 6 Mayors of Gaza 7 Town twinning 8 See also 9 References 10 External links

[edit] History

The history of Gaza has been shaped by its strategic location. The city is located on the Mediterranean coastal route, between North Africa and the greener lands of the Levant.^[1] Ancient Gaza was a prosperous trade center and a stop on the caravan route between Egypt and Syria. The city was occupied by Egypt around the 15th century BCE. Philistines settled the area several hundred years later, and Gaza became one of their chief cities.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Ancient

After the Siege of Tyre in 332 BC, Alexander the Great besieged Gaza, the last city to resist his conquest. Gaza, led by an eunuch named Batis and defended by Arab mercenaries, withstood the siege for two months, until it was overcome by storm. The defenders, most local elements, fought to death, and the women and children were taken captive. The city was resettled by neighboring Bedouins.^[2]

In 145 BC Gaza was conquered by Jonathan the Hasmonean (Brother of Judah the Maccabee). There was a prospering Jewish presence in Gaza until the Roman ruler Gavinius expelled them in 61 AD as part of the First Jewish-Roman War. In the times of the Mishnah and the Talmud there was a large Jewish community in Gaza. The remains of the ancient Gaza synagogue, built around 500 AD, were found near the city wharf.^[3]

[edit] Coming of Islam

It was conquered by Muslims in the 630s after a siege during which the Jewish population of the city defended it alongside the Byzantine garrison.^[4] Believed to be the site where Muhammad's great grandfather was buried, the city became an important Islamic center. In the 12th century, Gaza was taken by Christian Crusaders; it returned to Muslim control in 1187. During this period, the Jewish community in Gaza was destroyed. The Jews, however, returned and their community was rebuilt with the return of the Mamluk occupation.^[3]

The city was taken by the Ottomans in the 16th century, who lost it to the British in the Third Battle of Gaza on 7 November 1917 during the First World War. Starting in the early 1800s, Gaza was culturally dominated by neighboring Egypt. Though Gaza was part of the Ottoman Empire, a large number of its residents were Egyptians (and their descendants) who had fled political turmoil.^[5] In February 1799, when the French forces led by Napoleon entered the city, it was struck by a terrible plague which caused the Jews to move to other areas in Palestine. By the year 1886, thirty Jewish families had returned to Gaza, but they were deported by the Ottomans during World War I.^[3]

[edit] Modern

Following World War I, Gaza became part of the British mandate for Palestine. Jews came to Gaza after the war ended. Many left, however, during and after after the 1929 Palestine riots. Following these riots, in which 130 Gazan Jews were killed, the British prohibited Jews from living in Gaza to quell tension. Jews didn't come to Gaza, though in 1946 they established kibbutz Kfar Darom nearby in the central Gaza Strip. Though the Jewish community remained distinct, many still lived amongst the Christian and Moslem communities in neighborhoods such as Rimal. However, their numbers slowly dwindled as the tensions between Jews and Arabs increased throughout Palestine, causing mutual distrust. ^[3]

After the Israeli War of Independence in 1948, Egypt occupied Gaza and its surrounding area. The city's growing population was augmented by an influx of Arab refugees fleeing Israel. Israel captured the city and the Gaza Strip during the 1967 Six Day War, and Gaza remained occupied by Israel for the next 27 years. With the onset of the Palestinian uprising known as the intifada in 1987, Gaza became a center of political unrest and confrontation between Israelis and Palestinians, and economic conditions in the city worsened.^{[citation needed]}

In September 1993, leaders of Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) signed the Oslo Accords calling for Palestinian administration of the Gaza Strip and the West Bank town of Jericho, which was implemented in May 1994. The Israeli forces left Gaza, leaving a new Palestinian Authority to administer and police the city, along with the most of the Gaza Strip. The Palestinian Authority, led by Yasser Arafat, chose Gaza as its first provincial headquarters. In September 1995, Israel and the PLO signed a second peace agreement extending the Palestinian Authority to most West Bank towns. The agreement also established an elected 88-member Palestinian National Council, which held its inaugural session in Gaza in March 1996.^{[citation needed]} Following the Second Intifada, Israel withdrew from the remainder of the Gaza Strip, including the nearby Erez bloc. Much of the fighting in Hamas' June 2007 takeover of the Gaza Strip took place within the city, and they declared Gaza "liberated".^[6]

The last mayor of Gaza was Majid Abu Ramadan.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] People and culture

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Gaza's population is composed almost entirely of Muslims, though it also has a small Christian community. Famous Gazan Jews have included the medieval liturgical poet Israel Najara, who is buried in Gaza's local cemetery, and the Sabbatean prophet Nathan of Gaza. Rabbi Abraham Azulai lived in Gaza in 1619, and it was there that he wrote the book for which he is remembered, his cabalistic work "Hesed le-Avraham".^[7]

In Gaza, Arabic is spoken in the Egyptian dialect[2]. A massive influx of Palestinian refugees swelled Gaza's population after the 1948 Arab-Israeli war. By 1967, the population had grown to about six times its 1948 size. The city's population has continued to increase since that time, and poverty, unemployment, and poor living conditions are widespread. Gaza has serious deficiencies in housing, educational facilities, health facilities, infrastructure, and an inadequate sewage system, all of which have contributed to serious hygiene and public health problems. As in the rest of the Palestinian territories, the birth rate is extremely high. The vast majority of Palestinians in Gaza live in poverty (less than 2$ per day)^[8], and rely on United Nations food aid to survive.

[edit] Economy

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Gaza is the economic center for a region in which citrus fruits and other crops are grown. Many Gazans work in Israeli service and industry when the border is open. The city contains some small industry, including textiles and food processing. A variety of wares are sold in Gaza's street bazaars, including carpets, pottery, wicker furniture, and cotton clothing; commercial development in the city is minimal. Gaza serves as a transportation hub for the Gaza Strip, and contains a small port that serves a local fishing fleet. Overall economic development has been slow and hampered by frequent political unrest.

[edit] Attractions

Places of interest to the visitor are the Great Omari Mosque, the Mosque of Al Sayed Hashem, the Mosque of Ibn Othman, the Mosque of Ibn Marwan, The Sheikh Abul Azm sanctuary, the Sheikh Ajlin sanctuary, Tell al Mintar, Napoleon's fort (Al Radwan Castle), and the Church of St. Porphyrius. The city also has many new resorts where tourists and local people can swim and relax by the beach or swimming pools.

• The Great Mosque (Al-Omari Mosque)

Located in downtown Gaza, Al-Omari Mosque with its splendid minaret, reputedly occupying the site of the first ancient temple of Marnas and then a Greek Orthodox Church. The mosque was also the site of the Church of St. John the Baptist, a Norman church built by the Crusaders in the 12th century. On one of its pillars there used to be a Greek inscription which read "Hananiah bar Yaakov" (a Hebrew name) with a menorah carved above it.^[9]

• Napoleon's Fort (Qasr El-Basha)

Also located in downtown Gaza, this imposing stone building dates back to the Mamluk period. It is known as Qasr El-Basha because Napoleon spent a few nights here on his way through the town in 1799.

• St. Porphyrus Church

This 4th century church is where St. Porphyrus died and was buried in 420 CE. It is located in the Gaza's old city and still in use today by the Greek Orthodox Community.

• Al-Sayed Hashem Mosque

Located in Al-Daraj Quarter, the mosque is one of the largest and most beautiful ancient mosques in Gaza. The tomb of Hashem bin Abd-Manaf, Mohammad's grandfather who died in Gaza during a trading voyage, is believed to be under the dome of the mosque.

[edit] Transport

Gaza shared Yasser Arafat International Airport with the rest of the Gaza Strip. It was opened in 1998, but is currently inoperational, as its runways and support facilities having been largely destroyed by Israeli armed forces during the Al-Aqsa Intifada. Following the Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip in autumn 2005, discussions took place between the Palestinian and Israeli sides on its reopening. So far, Israeli negotiators have not agreed to allow the airport be reopened.

Arriving to Gaza:

Since the Hamas take-over in June 2007, access is not possible due to Israeli and Egyptian closure of the border crossings as measures for isolating the Hamas government. Previously the following access was possible:

• By air:

Gaza International Airport, 40 km (25 mi) south of Gaza. Ben Gurion International Airport, Tel Aviv, 75 km (47 mi) north of Gaza.

• By car:

Northern access: Erez Crossing point (border with Israel). Southern access: Rafah crossing point (border with Egypt).^[10]

[edit] Mayors of Gaza

• Maged Awni Abu Ramadan (current)
• Sa’ed Kharma^{[citation needed]}
• Aown S. Shawa (1994-2001)

[edit] Town twinning

• Image:Flag of France.svg Dunkerque, France
• Image:Flag of the United States.svg Camden, New Jersey, United States
• Image:Flag of Italy.svg Turin, Italy
• Image:Flag of Israel.svg Tel Aviv, Israel
• Image:Flag of Spain.svg Barcelona, Spain
• Image:Flag of Portugal.svg Cascais, Portugal
• Image:Flag of Morocco.svg Agadir, Morocco
• Image:Flag of Norway.svg Tromsø, Norway

[edit] See also

• Al-Azhar University - Gaza
• Battle of Gaza (disambiguation)
• Little Gaza
• Porphyry of Gaza

[edit] References

http://www.iugaza.edu.ps External link (remember http:// prefix)

[edit] External links

• Municipality of Gaza
• Gaza at Google Maps
• Al-Azhar University-Gaza
• The Islamic University - Gaza
• [3]
• Gaza Strip and Jews in Gaza until 1929 (history) - highest density of population worldwide since 1949 (from Encyclopaedia Judaica 1971)

Coordinates: 31°30′N, 34°27′E

v • d • e Cities in the Gaza Strip
Beit Hanoun (בית חנון  ·   بيت حانون)  ·   Beit Lahia (בית להיה  ·   بيت لاهية)  ·   Deir el-Balah (דיר אלבלח  ·   دير البلح)  ·   Gaza City (עזה  ·   غزة)  ·   Jabalia (ג'בליה  ·   جباليا)  ·   Khan Yunis (ח'אן יוניס  ·   خان يونس)  ·   Rafah (רפיח  ·   رفح)

v • d • e Capitals of Asia
Central Asia	Astana, Kazakhstan · Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan · Dushanbe, Tajikistan · Ashgabat, Turkmenistan · Tashkent, Uzbekistan
East Asia	Beijing, People's Republic of China · Taipei, Republic of China (Taiwan) · Tokyo, Japan · Pyongyang, North Korea · Seoul, South Korea · Ulan Bator, Mongolia
South Asia	Dhaka, Bangladesh · Thimphu, Bhutan · New Delhi, India · Malé, Maldives · Kathmandu, Nepal · Islamabad, Pakistan · Kotte, Sri Lanka
Southeast Asia	Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei · Naypyidaw, Burma · Phnom Penh, Cambodia · Dili, East Timor · Jakarta, Indonesia · Vientiane, Laos · Kuala Lumpur (official) and Putrajaya (administrative), Malaysia · Manila, Philippines · Singapore, Singapore · Bangkok, Thailand  · Hanoi, Vietnam
Southwest Asia	Kabul, Afghanistan† · Yerevan, Armenia · Baku, Azerbaijan · Manama, Bahrain · Nicosia, Cyprus · Tbilisi, Georgia · Tehran, Iran · Baghdad, Iraq · Jerusalem, Israel‡ · Amman, Jordan · Kuwait City, Kuwait · Beirut, Lebanon · Muscat, Oman · Doha, Qatar · Riyadh, Saudi Arabia · Damascus, Syria · Ankara, Turkey · Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates · San‘a’, Yemen
†Afghanistan is often considered Central/South Asian · ‡See Positions on Jerusalem for details on its status as capital

ar:غزة

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