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122-502: The name "Misrata ⵎⵙⵔⴰⵜⴰ" derives from the Misrata tribe, a section of the larger Berber Hawwara confederacy, whose homeland in Antiquity and the early Islamic period was coastal Tripolitania . "Trirone Acrone", the oldest description mentioned by Ptolemy III Euergetes of Misrata because it consists of three heads of land stretching into the sea depth, and got Misrata importance by being at

244-433: A "gift from God", they were the main food source and method of transportation for many Bedouins. In addition to their extraordinary milking potentials under harsh desert conditions, their meat was occasionally consumed by Bedouins. As a cultural tradition, camel races were organized during celebratory occasions, such as weddings or religious festivals . Some Bedouin societies live in arid regions. In areas where rainfall

366-695: A "world without time". Recent scholars have challenged the notion of the Bedouin as 'fossilized,' or 'stagnant' reflections of an unchanging desert culture. Emanuel Marx has shown that Bedouin were engaged in a constantly dynamic reciprocal relation with urban centers. Bedouin scholar Michael Meeker explains that "the city was to be found in their midst." At the time of World War I , a Qays Bedouin tribe from Harran , not far from Urfa , settled in Lüleburgaz in East Thrace under their last Sheikh Salih Abdullah. It

488-399: A Bedouin. Ottoman authorities also initiated private acquisition of large plots of state land offered by the sultan to the absentee landowners ( effendis ). Numerous tenants were brought in order to cultivate the newly acquired lands. Often it came at the expense of the Bedouin lands. In the late 19th century, many Bedouin began transition to a semi-nomadic lifestyle. One of the factors was

610-554: A Nasrid or Andalusi general. They also served as mercenaries in the armies of Christian kingdoms such as Castile or as auxiliaries sent by the Nasrid emirs of Granada to aid their Castilian allies. Bedouin The Bedouin , Beduin , or Bedu ( / ˈ b ɛ d u ɪ n / ; Arabic : بَدْو , romanized :  badw , singular بَدَوِي badawī ) are pastorally nomadic Arab tribes who have historically inhabited

732-413: A center of Italian colonization . A new town was laid out on a grid pattern and several public buildings were constructed including a new municipal office, the first hospital of the area, a modern state-of-the-art church (which was later converted to a mosque) and a large hotel. Giuseppe Volpi was named Conte di Misrata, or the "Count of Misrata." In 1935 the construction of the road connecting Zuwara in

854-516: A centre for the exchange of commodities and materials with the rest of the cities of the country, Misrata has modern infrastructure , including paved roads, electricity and communications. The Köppen-Geiger climate classification system classifies Misrata's climate as a hot semi-arid climate ( BSh ). The city is considered to be the "main center of the Turkish-origin community in Libya "; in total,

976-453: A centuries-long process that continuously occurred since the 7th century. The initial waves of migration from the 7th to the 10th centuries mostly involved sedentary Arabs who established communities in cities, towns and surrounding rural areas. However, the Arab migrations from the 11th to the 15th centuries involved a significant influx of a great amount of nomadic Bedouin tribes to the region. In

1098-692: A common front against the Idrisids of Fez. From their base in Sefrou they were able to defeat Ali ibn Umar and occupy Fez. The city's inhabitants refused to submit, however, and the Idrisid Yahya III was able to retake the city. Starting in the early 10th century, however, the Fatimids in the east began to intervene in present-day Morocco, hoping to expand their influence, and used the Miknasa as proxies and allies in

1220-452: A comprehensive reference book on northwestern Libya, stated that identification of Misrata as the ancient Thubactis is particularly problematic, complicated and "defies an easy answer." Nonetheless, the Roman town was located at some point on the oasis upon which the modern city sits. The two common identifications are at the eastern and western anchorages of modern Misrata or south and inland of

1342-515: A cosmopolitan atmosphere. The main square adjacent to the old souk resembles those of major Moroccan cities. Starting on 20 February 2011, small demonstrations took place in Misrata in solidarity with anti-government protesters in Benghazi. Libyan police immediately arrested the Misratan protesters, sparking larger demonstrations which Libyan government forces sought to quell using live ammunition. Within

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1464-579: A few days, 70 protesters were killed provoking outrage among the city's inhabitants. By 24 February, Benghazi fell under the control of anti-Gaddafi forces in the Libyan uprising against Gaddafi. That same day, Gaddafi regime forces attempted to wrest control of the city, but were repelled. The battle was renewed with shelling on 20 March as pro-Gaddafi tanks and artillery pushed forward and besieged Misrata. Eyewitnesses reported that pro-Gaddafi soldiers were shooting, killing and injuring unarmed civilians. The city

1586-645: A hierarchy of loyalties based on the proximity of some person to oneself, beginning with the self , and proceeding through the nuclear family as defined by male kinship, and then, in principle at least, to an entire genetic or linguistic group (which is perceived as akin to kinship in the Middle East and North Africa generally). Disputes are settled, interests are pursued, and justice and order are dispensed and maintained by means of this framework, organized according to an ethic of self-help and collective responsibility (Andersen 14). The individual family unit (referred to as

1708-507: A hundred. A clan was composed of a number of families, while a number of clans formed a tribe. Tribes would have areas reserved for their livestock called dirahs, which included wells for their exclusive use. They lived in black goat-hair tents called bayt al-shar, divided by cloth curtains into rug-floor areas for males, family and cooking. In Hofuf , they bartered their sheep, goats and camels, including milk and wool, for grain and other staples. Al-Naimi also quotes Paul Harrison's observation of

1830-574: A living herding sheep and goats. The largest Bedouin clan in Syria is called Ruwallah who are part of the 'Anizzah' tribe. Another famous branch of the Anizzah tribe is the two distinct groups of Hasana and S'baa who largely arrived from the Arabian peninsula in the 18th century. Herding among the Bedouin was common until the late 1950s, when it effectively ended during a severe drought from 1958 to 1961. Due to

1952-551: A major center for the Trans-Saharan trade route, where caravans carrying gold , leather, and slaves regularly stopped. Because of the rainfall along the coast, which was abundant compared to other cities in Tripolitania, and supplemental water from underground springs, Misrata's inhabitants were able to engage in unusually fertile agriculture in this largely arid region. The city was filled with thick areas of vegetable gardens while

2074-530: A man from the Bani Hassan tribe, who rode continuously for over 30 hours to reach Mithqal before their plot matured. Mithqal, using the information, prepared a trap for them, which resulted in the imprisonment of one of the Sardieh warriors. William notes that although the warrior was a prisoner, he was nonchalant and was not treated aggressively, and that the ghazzu wasn't a war, but a game in which camels and goats were

2196-452: A new regional council was formed, unifying a number of unrecognized Bedouin settlements— Abu Basma Regional Council . This resolution also regarded the need to establish seven new Bedouin settlements in the Negev, literally meaning the official recognition of unrecognized settlements, providing them with a municipal status and consequently with all the basic services and infrastructure. The council

2318-514: A policy of sedentarization in the early 20th century, which was initially linked with the establishment of the Ikhwan . As a result of this policy and subsequent modernization, the number of bedouin that retain their nomadic lifestyle has decreased rapidly. According to Ali Al-Naimi , the Bedouin, or Bedu, would travel in family and tribal groups, across the Arabian Peninsula in groups of fifty to

2440-505: A rebellion against the Ottomans and their local allies in 1835. After their eventual defeat in 1858, they were left in an inferior position to that of the Muntasirs. The Aghdams remained a powerful force nonetheless and their competition with the Muntasirs for leading positions within the local and regional government dominated Misratan politics. Misrata's urban residents did not contribute much to

2562-593: A relative golden age. The Marinids also pioneered the construction of madrasas across the country which promoted the education of Maliki ulama , although Sufi sheikhs increasingly predominated in the countryside. Starting in the early 15th century the Wattasid dynasty , a related ruling house, competed with the Marinid dynasty for control of their state and became de facto rulers of Morocco between 1420 and 1459 while officially acting as regents or viziers . In 1465

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2684-666: A result of the Syrian Civil War , some Bedouins became refugees and found shelter in Jordan, Turkey, Lebanon, and other states. Palestinian Bedouins were originally from the Negev Desert . In the course of the 1948 Palestine war , they fled or were displaced from their land. Other Bedouins were expelled from the Negev in 1953 and had relocated to the West Bank , which at the time belonged to Jordan . Today, there are 40,000 Bedouins in

2806-528: A result of the abolition of slavery and increasing European colonial influence in Sub-Saharan Africa , Trans-Saharan trade declined and consequently Misrata's role in the trade decreased. However, the decline in Trans-Saharan trade saw the establishment of weekly and permanent markets in the city, replacing the seasonal markets associated with long-distance trade. Because of this new economic situation,

2928-482: A result of this Libyan victory, Italy's army and their Muntasir allies withdrew from Misrata. By 1916, Misrata had become semi-autonomous and collected taxes from Sirte, the region of Fezzan and the area between it and Sirte as well as the Warfalla tribal area south of Tripoli. Because of its strategic harbor, Ottoman and German forces used Misrata as one of their principal supply ports during World War I. The city became

3050-520: A result. Although the Italians reestablished their control of much of Libya following their victory in World War I, al-Swehli retained his position as administrator of Misrata. In 1920 he expelled his Italian adviser from Misrata and controlled the town independently with about 10,000 fighters. Al Rakib , a Tripoli-based newspaper, commended the order and security in place at Misrata under al-Swehli as well as

3172-601: A substantial contingent in the subsequent Muslim conquest of Iberia . As Berbers, the Zenata spoke one of the Berber languages . Ibn Khaldun wrote that their dialect was distinct from other Berber dialects. French linguist Edmond Destaing in 1915 proposed " Zenati " as a loose subgrouping within the Northern Berber languages , including Riffian Berber in northeastern Morocco and Shawiya Berber in northeastern Algeria. Before

3294-476: A system of standardizing the contemporary Classical Arabic for maximal intelligibility across the Arabophone areas, believed that the Bedouin spoke the purest, most conservative variety of the language. To solve irregularities of pronunciation, the Bedouin were asked to recite certain poems, whereafter consensus was relied on to decide the pronunciation and spelling of a given word. A plunder and massacre of

3416-457: A tent or bayt ) usually traditionally comprised three or four adults (a married couple plus siblings or parents) and any number of children. The Bedouins' ethos comprises courage, hospitality, loyalty to family and pride of ancestry. Bedouin tribes were not controlled by a central power, like a government or empire, but rather were led by tribal chiefs. Some chiefs exercised their power from oases, where merchants would organise trade through

3538-410: Is a modern university which was established in 1983, persisting a long-term goal to have an educated community and to end illiteracy and innumeracy in society. Despite its short age, the university has gained excellence in providing the knowledge and skills required for higher education studies, and has enjoyed a great reputation for the teaching, research and training it provides. It has constantly topped

3660-576: Is a relocation of some 30.000-40.000 Negev Bedouin from areas not recognized by the government to government-approved townships . In a 2012 resolution the European Parliament called for the withdrawal of the Prawer plan and respect for the rights of the Bedouin people. In September 2014, Yair Shamir , who heads the Israeli government's ministerial committee on Bedouin resettlement arrangements, stated that

3782-414: Is inhabited by the prominent Liyathnah tribe alongside the smaller Bedul community, believed to have Jewish or Nabataean ancestry. The Jordanian government provides the Bedouin with different services such as education, housing and health clinics. However, some Bedouins give it up and prefer their traditional nomadic lifestyle. In the recent years, there is a growing discontent of the Bedouin with

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3904-481: Is said that this tribe was originally from Tihamah . Ghazzu was still relevant to the Bedouin lifestyle in the early 20th century. After a 1925 stay with Sheikh Mithqal Al-Fayez of the Bani Sakher , William Seabrook wrote about his experience of a ghazzu from the Sardieh tribe on Mithqal's 500 Hejin racing camels. The ghazzu was intercepted by Mithqal when he was notified about the Sardieh tribe's intentions from

4026-453: Is very unpredictable, a camp will be moved irregularly, depending on the availability of green pasture. Where winter rainfall is more predictable in regions further south, some Bedouin people plant grain along their migration routes. This proves a resource for the livestock throughout the winter. In regions such as western Africa, where there is more predictable rainfall, the Bedouin practice transhumance . They plant crops near permanent homes in

4148-562: The Almohads who had controlled the region. At the height of their power in the mid-14th century, during the reigns of Abu al-Hasan and his son Abu Inan , the Marinid dynasty briefly held sway over most of the Maghreb including large parts of modern-day Algeria and Tunisia . They supported the Emirate of Granada in al-Andalus in the 13th and 14th centuries; an attempt to gain a direct foothold on

4270-477: The Balkan and Caucasus among areas predominantly populated by the nomads in the regions of modern Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, and Israel, and also created several permanent Bedouin settlements, although the majority of them did not remain. The settlement of non Arabs in the traditionally Bedouin areas was a big cause of discontent. This became even severe because every Arab tribe, including the settled ones, have ancestry as

4392-718: The European side of the Strait of Gibraltar was however defeated at the Battle of Río Salado in 1340 and finished after the Castilians took Algeciras from the Marinids in 1344, definitively expelling them from the Iberian Peninsula . In contrast to their predecessors, the Marinids sponsored Maliki Sunnism as the official religion and made Fez their capital. Under their rule, Fez enjoyed

4514-600: The Fertile Crescent . Bedouins have been referred to by various names throughout history, including Arabaa by the Assyrians ( ar-ba-ea ), being a nisba of the noun Arab , a name still used for Bedouins today. They are referred to as the ʾAʿrāb ( أعراب ) "aɛrāb" in Arabic . While many Bedouins have abandoned their nomadic and tribal traditions for a modern urban lifestyle, others retain traditional Bedouin culture such as

4636-560: The Hashemites did not see a revolt similar to turbulence in other Arab states. The main reasons for that are the high respect to the monarch and contradictory interests of different groups of the Jordanian society. The King Abdullah II maintains his distance from the complaints by allowing blame to fall on government ministers, whom he replaces at will. The Arab migration to the Maghreb had been

4758-455: The Judean caves of Qumran in 1946. Of great religious, cultural, historical and linguistic significance, 972 texts were found over the following decade, many of which were discovered by Bedouins. Successive Israeli administrations tried to demolish Bedouins villages in the Negev. Between 1967 and 1989, Israel built seven legal townships in the north-east of the Negev, with Tel as-Sabi or Tel Sheva

4880-482: The Persian Gulf and Libya , as well as a desire for improved standards of living, effectively led most Bedouin to become settled citizens of various nations, rather than stateless nomadic herders. Governmental policies pressing the Bedouin have in some cases been executed in an attempt to provide service (schools, health care, law enforcement and so on—see Chatty 1986 for examples), but in others have been based on

5002-782: The Spanish in Oran and the Saadians in Morocco, was finally ended by the Ottomans . Zanata tribesmen also played a role as light cavalry in the armies of the Emirate of Granada . This gave rise to the Spanish term jinete (derived from the name 'Zenata'), which denoted this type of light cavalry. They formed the backbone of the Granadan army, serving both in crucial battles as well as in regular raids inside Christian territory. They were highly mobile on

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5124-459: The West Bank to land outside of Jerusalem for better access to infrastructure, health, and education. Officials stated that a "forcible transfer" of over 7000 Bedouin people would "destroy their culture and livelihoods." Most of the Bedouin tribes migrated from the Arabian Peninsula to what is Jordan today between the 14th and 18th centuries. They are often referred to as a backbone of

5246-456: The "tribe" as a formal unit of administration. The goal of these early reforms was to weaken local Bedouin magistrates and limit what she terms as "rural mobility", the ability of these local Bedouins to, independently of the Ottoman state, accumulate wealth through the wheat trade and other means. At the end of the 19th century, Sultan Abdülhamid II settled Muslim populations ( Circassians ) from

5368-640: The 11th century, the Bedouin tribes of Banu Hilal and Banu Sulaym , who originated from central and north Arabia respectively, living at the time in a desert between the Nile and the Red Sea , moved westward into the Maghreb areas and were joined by the Bedouin tribe of Ma'qil , which had its roots in South Arabia, as well as other Arab tribes. The 11th century witnessed the most significant wave of Arab migration, surpassing all previous movements. This event unfolded when

5490-534: The 1757 raid represented the peak of such attacks which was also likely prompted by the major drought of 1756. Under the Tanzimat Land reforms of 1858, a new Ottoman Land Law was issued, which offered legal grounds for the displacement of the Bedouin ( Turkish : Bedeviler). As the Ottoman Empire gradually lost power, this law instituted an unprecedented land registration process that was also meant to boost

5612-424: The 1970s-80s renovation of Misrata's marina to better supply the industrial plants with raw material, the industry has been able to expand and the steel mill authorities hold considerable influence in the city. Al-Naseem Dairy, one of the largest private companies in Libya, is also located in Misrata and employs around 750 workers. A historic aspect of the local economy is the cloth and textile industry. Situated near

5734-403: The Arab conquests, the Zenata ranged between present-day Tunisia and Tripolitania in present-day Libya , before moving steadily west where they settled in western Algeria near Tiaret and Tlemcen , while some of them moved still further west to Morocco . They dominated the politics of the western Maghreb (Morocco and western Algeria) in two different periods: in the 10th century, during

5856-550: The Bani Hasan (Mafraq, Zarqa, Jarash, Ajloun and parts of Amman) Bani Ṣakher (Amman and Madaba) Banū Laith (Petra), and Banū al-Ḥuwayṭāt (they reside in Wadi Rum ). There are numerous lesser groups, such as the al-Sirḥān, Banū Khālid, Hawazim, ʿAṭiyyah, and Sharafāt. The Ruwālah (Rwala) tribe, which is not indigenous, passes through Jordan in its yearly wandering from Syria to Saudi Arabia. The region encompassing Wadi Musa and Petra

5978-451: The Bedouin , Bedouin systems of justice . Livestock and herding , principally of goats, sheep and dromedary camels comprised the traditional livelihoods of Bedouins. These were used for meat, dairy products, and wool. Most of the staple foods that made up the Bedouins' diet were dairy products. Camels, in particular, had numerous cultural and functional uses. Having been regarded as

6100-611: The Bedouin, "There seems to be no limit at all to their endurance." The Syrian Desert was the original homeland of the Arab Bedouin tribes which have been mentioned as far back as the Neo-Assyrian era where they're referred to by Tiglath-Pileser III as being among the Syrians integrated into the Assyrian administrative system. Today there are over a million Bedouin living in Syria, making

6222-611: The Bedouins switched side and fought against the Ottomans. Hamad Pasha al-Sufi (died 1923), Sheikh of the Nijmat sub-tribe of the Tarabin , led a force of 1,500 men who joined the Ottoman raid on the Suez Canal . In Orientalist historiography, the Negev Bedouin have been described as remaining largely unaffected by changes in the outside world until recently. Their society was often considered

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6344-570: The Berber tribe of Misurata (The Misurateens), which means the sailors. Modern Misrata was established around the 7th century AD during the beginning of modern Libya's rule by the Caliphate . Some contemporary sources claim the town existed prior to Islamic rule, during the Roman Empire era and that its initial Arabic name derived from its Roman name Thubactis . David Mattingly , author of Tripolitania ,

6466-611: The Fatimids were gone, however, Musa once again threw off their authority and recognized the Umayyad caliph. The Fatimids sent their general Maysur to confront him again, and this time he fled. He was pursued and killed by the Idrisids. The latter preserved a part of their realm in northern Morocco until the Umayyads finally ended their rule definitively in 985. The Umayyads in turn kept control over northern Morocco until their caliphate's collapse in

6588-683: The Galilee and 10,000 in the central region of Israel. All of the Bedouins residing in Israel were granted Israeli citizenship in 1954. As of 2020, there are 210,000 Bedouins in Israel: 150,000 in the Negev, 50,000 in Galilee and the Jezreel Valley , and 10,000 in the central region of Israel. Galilee Bedouins have been living in the northern part of Israel for four centuries. Today, they live in 28 settlements in

6710-444: The Hajj caravan by Bedouin tribesmen occurred in 1757, led by Qa'dan Al - Fayez of the Bani Sakhr tribe (Modern-day Jordan) in his vengeance against the Ottomans for failing to pay his tribe for their help protecting the pilgrims. An estimated 20,000 pilgrims were either killed in the raid or died of hunger or thirst as a result including relatives of the Sultan and Musa Pasha. Although Bedouin raids on Hajj caravans were fairly common,

6832-433: The Italians in Rome months prior to the invasion and Umar al-Muntasir used his influence to coordinate with them militarily once they landed on the Libyan coastline. In return for their collaboration, the Muntasirs were able to maintain their administrative role and gained positions as advisers to the Italian military authorities. During World War I , Misrata played an important role in the Libyan-Ottoman resistance against

6954-479: The Italians was the "Tripoli-Benghazi line" that was started in 1941 and was never completed because of the Italian defeat during World War II : a new railway station was built in Misrata, but was destroyed by the British attacks in 1942. In response to alleged vote rigging during the 1952 parliamentary elections, Misrata witnessed mass riots which contributed to the Libyan monarchy's permanent ban on political parties. Following Muammar Gaddafi 's coup that overthrew

7076-476: The Kingdom, since Bedouin clans traditionally support the monarchy. Most of Jordan's Bedouin live in the vast wasteland that extends east from the Desert Highway. The eastern Bedouin are camel breeders and herders, while the western Bedouin herd sheep and goats. Some Bedouin in Jordan are semi-nomads, they adopt a nomadic existence during part of the year but return to their lands and homes in time to practice agriculture. The largest nomadic groups of Jordan are

7198-509: The Libyan Ports Company, Libyan Iron and Steel Company , the Libyan publishing, distribution and Advertising Company. Besides that, it has branches of public and private sector banks and one locally and privately owned bank. Misrata is governed by a local council consisting of 28 seats. The city held its first free elections on 20 February 2012 after a month of organizing. It was the first major city to hold local elections in post-Gaddafi Libya while other cities had their municipal officials by

7320-491: The Muntasir and Adgham, dominated the political, social and economic aspects of Misrata and led the local tribes against their Turkish overlords during various periods of tension. There were many wealthy families in the city, but the Muntasirs, who were of Arabian descent, and the Adghams, who descended from Ottoman officers who settled in the province in previous centuries, were the most prominent. They made their income from commerce and protected their wealth by cooperating with

7442-418: The Muntasirs, led by Umar al-Muntasir, controlled the upper echelons of the newly organized bureaucracy in Tripoli Province and were largely accepted by the local notables as the administrators of Misrata along with Sirte , Gharyan and Tarhuna . However, that year, the Young Turks acquired power in Istanbul and ousted the traditional Ottoman leadership. Viewing the Muntasirs as loyalists of Abdul Hamid II ,

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7564-416: The Ottoman provincial authorities. Both had extended families and economic holdings not just in Misrata, but also the provincial capital of Tripoli as well as the eastern Cyrenican towns of Benghazi and Derna . The Aghdams had traditionally resisted efforts by the central Ottoman government in Istanbul to reestablish direct control over Tripoli Province and, under the leadership of Osman al-Aghdam, they led

7686-453: The Turks form approximately two-thirds (est.270,000 in 2019) of Misrata's 400,000 inhabitants. Serving the role of Libya's commercial hub, Misrata is notably clean and construction is well-organized. Its citizens are largely viewed by other Libyans as business oriented. The city's steel mill industry (which is dominated by the government-owned Libyan Iron and Steel Company ) is one its principal income producers and sources of employment. Due to

7808-450: The Zenata were divided into three large tribes: Jarawa , Maghrawa , and Banu Ifran . Formerly occupying a large portion of the Maghreb , they were displaced to the south and west in conflicts with the more powerful Kutama and Houara . The Zenata adopted Islam early, in the 7th century. While other Berber tribes continued to resist the Umayyad Caliphate conquest well into the 8th century, they were quickly Islamized. They also formed

7930-407: The buildings housing these assets were destroyed. However, several small businesses are beginning to rebuild and reopen. Nonetheless, recovery remains relatively slow partially due to the shortage of banknotes since Libyan banks are only allowing citizens to withdraw or borrow limited amounts of funds. Once the Libyan Central Bank receives most of the assets that had been internationally frozen during

8052-417: The city by mid-May. Thereafter, forces from Misrata played an important role in other theaters of the war, such as the Battle of Tripoli , the Battle of Sirte and the Battle of Bani Walid (2011) . Misrata lies on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea 187 km (116 mi) east of Tripoli and 825 km (513 mi) west of Benghazi. The location of the city creates a dualism of sea and sand, bounded by

8174-423: The city established itself as one of Libya's oldest producers of luxury carpets. The Misrata tribe, a section of the larger Berber Hawwara confederacy, inhabited the coastal region of Tripolitania during the Roman and early Arab eras. The region of Tripolitania , which included Misrata, came under the regency of the Ottoman Empire in 1551. By the beginning of the 19th century, Misrata had established itself as

8296-414: The city limits. To cope with an rising population due to immigration from the surrounding areas, Misrata witnessed a construction boom in the late 19th century. A covered produce market and numerous streets lined with shops were built in addition to new district and municipal government offices, a renovated Ottoman army barracks and several Turkish-style houses for the city's wealthy families. Two clans,

8418-402: The city's central square are souks ("open-air markets") where, usually three times a week, merchants continue to sell luxury carpets, furniture cloth and traditional clothing, including abayas (cloaks worn by males for celebratory occasions.) Most major businesses, shops and social centers are located on Tripoli Street , Misrata's main thoroughfare. During the Siege of Misrata , most of

8540-471: The city, respectively. The Roman town was recorded as one of the six municipia (small self-governing cities) of the Tripolitania province, a rank below coloniae (cities with full citizenship rights.) In any case, in the 7th century, Misrata served as a caravan supply center and an important port. Merchant traders from Misrata were well known throughout the Sahara during the years of the Caliphate (7th–19th centuries). In addition to its strategic location,

8662-413: The civil war, it is probable that local banks would ease these restrictions. The city has a great potential for expansion since it attracts a lot of internal immigration and is surrounded by uninhabited flat land with no obstacles. It is home to Misrata Airport , one of Libya's largest airports. There is a port in the neighbouring town of Qasr Ahmad . Misrata is the seat of many national companies such as

8784-607: The crossroads of many convoys and also because it is in the middle of an agricultural area with the name of "Cephalae Promentorium" (Kevalay) of the Greek geographer Strabo . And the city of Misrata is one of the commercial stations that have been built by the Phoenicians, since more than 3000 years (The Tenth Century BC) to the north-western parts of the Libyan coast. The flag then by the name of Thubactis Misrata and know that name in relation to

8906-841: The decline of the Idrisids , as proxies for either the Fatimid Caliphs or the Umayyad Caliphs of Cordoba , and in the 13th to 16th centuries with the rise of the Zayyanid dynasty in Algeria and the Marinids and Wattasids in Morocco, all from Zenata tribes. Today, most of the Berbers of the Rif region are believed to be of Zenata ancestry. In the early Islamic period of Morocco, Berber groups and tribes dominated

9028-668: The desert regions in the Arabian Peninsula , North Africa , the Levant , and Mesopotamia ( Iraq ). The Bedouin originated in the Syrian Desert and Arabian Desert but spread across the rest of the Arab world in West Asia and North Africa after the spread of Islam . The English word bedouin comes from the Arabic badawī , which means "desert-dweller", and is traditionally contrasted with ḥāḍir ,

9150-500: The desert. Scarcity of water and of permanent pastoral land required them to move constantly. The Moroccan traveller Ibn Battuta reported that in 1326 on the route to Gaza , the Egyptian authorities had a customs post at Qatya on the north coast of Sinai . Here Bedouin were being used to guard the road and track down those trying to cross the border without permission. The Early Medieval grammarians and scholars seeking to develop

9272-407: The deserts are still popular leisure activities for urban Bedouins who live in close proximity to deserts or other wilderness areas. A widely quoted Bedouin apothegm is "I am against my brother, my brother and I are against my cousin, my cousin and I are against the stranger" sometimes quoted as "I and my brother are against my cousin, I and my cousin are against the stranger." This saying signifies

9394-552: The desire to seize land traditionally roved and controlled by the Bedouin. In recent years, some Bedouin have adopted the pastime of raising and breeding white doves , while others have rejuvenated the traditional practice of falconry . The Arabian Peninsula was one of the original homes of the Bedouin. From there, they started to spread out to surrounding deserts, forced out by the lack of water and food. According to tradition, Arabian Bedouin tribes are descendants of two groups: Qahtanis , also known as Yaman , who originate from

9516-485: The drought, many Bedouin were forced to give up herding for standard jobs. Another factor was the formal annulling of the Bedouin tribes' legal status in Syrian law in 1958, along with attempts of the ruling Ba'ath Party regime to wipe out tribalism. Preferences for customary law ('urf) in contrast to state law (qanun) have been informally acknowledged and tolerated by the state in order to avoid having its authority tested in

9638-718: The early 11th century. Following this, Morocco was dominated by various Zenata Berber tribes. Until the rise of the Sanhaja Almoravids later in the century, the Maghrawa controlled Fez , Sijilmasa and Aghmat while the Banu Ifran ruled over Tlemcen, Salé (Chellah), and the Tadla region. In the 13th century the Banu Marin ( Arabic : بنو مرين ), a Zenata tribe, rose to power in Morocco. Starting in 1245 they began overthrowing

9760-535: The empire's tax base. Few Bedouin opted to register their lands with the Ottoman Tapu , due to lack of enforcement by the Ottomans, illiteracy, refusal to pay taxes and lack of relevance of written documentation of ownership to the Bedouin way of life at that time. Some scholars, such as Nora Elizabeth Barakat, believe the displacement of the Bedouin had its roots in events even earlier than the 1858 Land Reforms, for example in an 1844 Anatolia-specific decree recognizing

9882-469: The field, armed with lances , javelins , and small round shields known for their flexibility, and used their own characteristic set of tactics. They were recruited and led by exiled members of the Marinid family and settled within the kingdom of Granada. Their Marinid commander was known as the shaykh al-ghuzāt ('chief of the ghazis '), but in 1374 Muhammad V suppressed this office due to their political interference, after which they were commanded by

10004-528: The first. The largest, city of Rahat , has a population of over 58,700 (as of December 2013); as such it is the largest Bedouin settlement in the world. Another well-known township out of the seven of them that the Israeli government built, is Hura . According to the Israel Land Administration (2007), some 60 per cent of the Negev Bedouin live in urban areas . The rest live in so-called unrecognized villages , which are not officially recognized by

10126-698: The government was examining ways to lower the birthrate of the Bedouin community in order to improve its standard of living. Shamir claimed that without intervention, the Bedouin population could exceed half a million by 2035. In May 2015, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs and the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees have combined forces. Both organizations called on Israel to stop its plans to relocate Bedouin communities currently living in

10248-423: The headquarters of a wide-ranging administration which supervised military recruitment and tax collection, had its own ammunition factory, printed its own currency and operated its own schools and hospitals. However, once Nuri Bey , the Ottoman officer in charge of the Libyan front, was recalled to Istanbul in early 1918, Ottoman influence waned in Misrata. Suwayhli lost his main backer and a huge source of funding as

10370-644: The influence of the Ottoman empire authorities who started a forced sedentarization of the Bedouin living on its territory. The Ottoman authorities viewed the Bedouin as a threat to the state's control and worked hard on establishing law and order in the Negev . During the First World War , the Negev Bedouin initially fought with the Ottomans against the British . However, under the influence of British agent T. E. Lawrence ,

10492-538: The last Marinid sultan, Abd al-Haqq II , was finally overthrown and killed by a revolt in Fez , which led to the establishment of direct Wattasid rule over most of Morocco. The Wattasid sultans in turn lasted until the mid-16th century, when they were finally overthrown by the Saadians , who inaugurated the beginning of Arab Sharifian rule over Morocco (which continues under the present-day Alaouite dynasty ). Meanwhile, around

10614-565: The last time the Idrisids held power in Fez. Thereafter Fez remained under Zenata control. The Miknasa pursued the Idrisids to the fortress of Hajar an-Nasr in northern Morocco, but soon afterwards civil war broke out among the Miknasa when Musa switched allegiance to the Umayyads of Cordoba in 931 in an attempt to gain more independence. The Fatimids sent Humayd ibn Yasal (or Hamid ), the nephew of Masala ibn Habus, to confront Musa, defeating him in 933 and forcing him to fall back into line. Once

10736-446: The monarchy of King Idris in 1969, Misrata grew rapidly from the 1970s onward. Two iron and steel mills were established in the city resulting in a mass migration of Libyans from nearby rural areas to Misrata and consequently generated population and economic growth. The marina was rapidly developed to host shipping to service the steel plants and other factories with raw materials and other goods. During this period Misrata became

10858-476: The more common forms of Arabic poetry are often in Modern Standard Arabic . The well-regulated traditional habit of Bedouin tribes of raiding other tribes, caravans, or settlements is known in Arabic as ghazw . Historically, the Bedouin engaged in nomadic herding, agriculture and sometimes fishing in the Syrian steppe since 6000 BCE. By about 850 BCE, a complex network of settlements and camps

10980-727: The mountains of Southwestern Arabia, and claim descent from a semi-legendary ancestral figure, Qahtan (often linked to the biblical Joktan ), and Adnanis , also known as Qays , who originate in North-Central Arabia and claimed descent from Adnan , a descendant of the Biblical Ishmael . A number of Bedouin tribes reside in Saudi Arabia. Among them are Anazzah , Juhaynah , Shammar , al-Murrah , Mahra , Dawasir , Harb , Ghamid , Mutayr , Subay' , 'Utayba , Bani khalid , Qahtan , Rashaida , and Banu Yam . Saudi Arabia pursued

11102-521: The national interim government. Voter registration was at 101,486 and the number of candidates was 28, all of whom were independents . The mayor of Misrata during the civil war was Khalifa al-Zwawy, while first elected mayor became Yousef Ben Yousef. Misurata University , with its 15 faculties, is located in the city of Misrata. There are several higher education institutions including a number of university faculties that are administratively linked to universities of other cities in Libya. Misurata University

11224-661: The north. They also live in mixed villages with other non-Bedouin Arabs. The Bedouin who remained in the Negev belonged to the Tiaha confederation as well as some smaller groups such as the 'Azazme and the Jahalin . After 1948, some Negev Bedouins were displaced. The Jahalin tribe, for instance, lived in the Tel Arad region of the Negev prior to the 1950s. In the early 1950s, the Jahalin were among

11346-412: The number of nomadic Bedouins is shrinking and many are now settled. Prior to the 1948 Israeli Declaration of Independence , an estimated 65,000–90,000 Bedouins lived in the Negev desert. According to Encyclopedia Judaica , 15,000 Bedouin remained in the Negev after 1948; other sources put the number as low as 11,000. Another source states that in 1999 110,000 Bedouins lived in the Negev, 50,000 in

11468-448: The occupying Italian Army . Under the leadership of Ramadan al-Swehli , the city was used a base of support for the Ottoman Empire and his Misratan army dealt a major blow to the Italians at Qasr Abu Hadi near Sirte in April 1915. Over 500 Italian troops were killed while Swehli's troops captured over 5,000 rifles, various types of machine guns and artillery and several tons of ammunition. As

11590-622: The ousted sultan, they made efforts to reduce Muntasir power in the region. The Young Turk administration in Tripoli vetoed Muntasir membership in the local parliament and dismissed the governor of Tarhuna who was Umar al-Muntasir's son, Ahmad Dhiya al-Muntasir, from his post. In addition, they allegedly hired a group of local Misratans to assassinate Abd al-Qasim, another one Umar's sons. In October 1911, Italy had launched an invasion against Ottoman Tripolitania, but were unable to reach Misrata until June 1912 . Ahmad Dhiya al-Muntasir had consulted with

11712-399: The political scene and avoided contact with the Ottoman authorities out of concern of conscription into the army and provincial tax collection. In contrast, the rural areas of Misrata were populated mostly by fellahin (peasantry) and former Bedouins who had retained their tribal affiliations and loyalties and thus involved themselves in competition for political influence. Up until 1908,

11834-547: The politics of the region well after the Arab conquests . The Zenata confederation did too. A Zenata chieftain, Khalid ibn Hamid al-Zanati , was a leading figure in the Berber revolt of 740 against the Arab Umayyad Caliphate , and led Berber rebels to major victories in the Battle of the Nobles and the Battle of Bagdoura . While the Umayyads managed to defeat the rebels eventually and reassert some of their authority,

11956-402: The principal economic, educational and administrative center of eastern Tripolitania. The majority of government ministries have branch offices in the city in addition to several college universities, schools and hospitals. The commercial area of Misrata contains numerous shops, restaurants, and cafes. The extensive development of the city attracted large numbers of immigrants to Misrata, giving it

12078-612: The prizes. In the 1950s and 1960s, large numbers of Bedouin throughout Midwest Asia started to leave the traditional, nomadic life to settle in the cities of Midwest Asia, especially as hot ranges shrank and populations grew. For example, in Syria , the Bedouin way of life effectively ended during a severe drought from 1958 to 1961, which forced many Bedouin to abandon herding for standard jobs. Similarly, governmental policies in Egypt , Israel , Jordan , Iraq , Tunisia , oil-producing Arab states of

12200-515: The region. In 917 the Miknasa and its leader Masala ibn Habus, acting on behalf of their Fatimid allies, attacked Fez and forced Yahya IV to recognize Fatimid suzerainty, before deposing him in 919 or 921. He was succeeded by his cousin Musa ibn Abul 'Afiya, who had already been given charge over the rest of the country. The Idrisid Hassan I al-Hajam managed to wrest control of Fez from 925 but in 927 Musa returned, captured Hassan and killed him, marking

12322-462: The residents of the countryside devoted less time to pastoralism, husbandry and guide service for foreign traders and began to shift their focus on agricultural production. Farmers concentrated on growing cash crops , relying on market relations to provide income for their families, instead of subsistence farming and periodic barter exchanging. Bedouins increasingly abandoned their nomadic lifestyle and began to settle into permanent dwellings within

12444-459: The ruling monarch Abdullah II of Jordan . In August 2007, police clashed with some 200 Bedouins who were blocking the main highway between Amman and the port of Aqaba. Livestock herders were protesting the government's lack of support in the face of the steeply rising cost of animal feed and expressed resentment about government assistance to refugees. Arab Spring events in 2011 led to demonstrations in Jordan, and Bedouins took part in them. But

12566-782: The same time as the Marinids, the Zenata Zayyanid dynasty (also known as the Abd al-Wadids) ruled over the Kingdom of Tlemcen in northwestern Algeria, centered on Tlemcen . The territory stretched from Tlemcen to the Chelif bend and Algiers . At its zenith, the kingdom reached the Moulouya river to the west, Sijilmasa to the south, and the Soummam river to the east. The Zayyanid dynasty's rule lasted from 1235 until 1556, when their rule, under pressure from

12688-439: The sea to the north and east and to the south by golden sands dotted with palm and olive trees. Like Benghazi and Tripoli, Misrata is divided into two distinct sections. Older Misrata consists of small stone houses and narrow arched streets while the newer part of the city, which began to develop in the 20th century, consists of modern buildings, homes, factories and industrial areas. Aside from its distinct location, which makes it

12810-403: The state due to general planning issues and other political reasons. Despite these communities often predating the state of Israel, many are considered to be located in areas deemed unsuitable by the Israeli government, including military fire zones, natural reserves , landfills , etc. On 29 September 2003, Israeli government adapted a new "Abu Basma Plan" (Resolution 881), according to which

12932-413: The strict application of Islamic law including the suppression of hard liquor. In June, however, al-Swehli attempted to attack the Muntasirs and Warfalla in the area between Misrata and Tripoli, but his forces were defeated and al-Swehli was executed by Abd al-Qadir al-Muntasir's troops. A few weeks after the battle, the new Italian governor attacked Misrata. During the mid-1920s and 1930s, Misrata became

13054-469: The suburbs of Rahat. It will have a hospital and a new campus inside. The Bedouins of Israel receive free education and medical services from the state. They are allotted child cash benefits, which has contributed to the high birth rate among the Bedouin of 5% per year. In September 2011, the Israeli government approved a five-year economic development plan called the Prawer plan . One of its implications

13176-403: The surrounding countryside included fields of wheat, barley, date palms and olive orchards. Misrata's artisans also expanded on the city's ancient carpet industry for which it was regionally renowned. Although Misrata contained a well-built harbor, most of its long-distance trade was overland because the city of Benghazi to the east served as the preferable substitute for maritime shipping. As

13298-523: The term for sedentary people . Bedouin territory stretches from the vast deserts of North Africa to the rocky ones of the Middle East . They are sometimes traditionally divided into tribes, or clans (known in Arabic as ʿašāʾir ; عَشَائِر or qabāʾil قبائل ), and historically share a common culture of herding camels, sheep and goats. The vast majority of Bedouins adhere to Islam , although there are some fewer numbers of Christian Bedouins present in

13420-450: The territory controlled by the tribe. The structure of Bedouin tribes were held together more so by shared feelings of common ancestry rather than a tribal chief atop the hierarchy. Bedouin traditionally had strong honor codes, and traditional systems of justice dispensation in Bedouin society typically revolved around such codes. The bisha'a , or ordeal by fire, is a well-known Bedouin practice of lie detection . See also: Honor codes of

13542-525: The traditional ʿašāʾir clan structure, traditional music , poetry, dances (such as saas ), and many other cultural practices and concepts. Some urbanized Bedouins often organise cultural festivals, usually held several times a year, in which they gather with other Bedouins to partake in and learn about various Bedouin traditions—from poetry recitation and traditional sword dances to playing traditional instruments and even classes teaching traditional tent knitting. Traditions like camel riding and camping in

13664-533: The tribal territories. In 1982 the al-Assad family turned to the Bedouin tribe leaders for assistance during the Muslim Brotherhood uprising against al-Assad government (see 1982 Hama massacre ). The Bedouin sheikhs' decision to support Hafez al-Assad led to a change in attitude on the part of the government that permitted the Bedouin leadership to manage and transform critical state development efforts supporting their own status, customs and leadership. As

13786-584: The tribes that, according to Emanuel Marx , "moved or were removed by the military government". They ended up in the so-called E1 area East of Jerusalem . About 1,600 Bedouin serve as volunteers in the Israel Defense Forces , many as trackers in the IDF's elite tracking units. Famously, Bedouin shepherds were the first to discover the Dead Sea Scrolls , a collection of Jewish texts from antiquity, in

13908-513: The university rankings league in Libya and was recently ranked first in Libya and the 55th in Africa according to the Webometrics Rankings 2013. (e.g. Al-Tahadi University of Sirte and Tripoli University of Tripoli). A railway line was proposed in 2008 but as of 2016 no actual construction had taken place. It is also served by Misrata Airport . In September 2019 an express bus service

14030-432: The valleys where there is more rain and move their livestock to the highland pastures. Oral poetry is the most popular art form among Bedouins. Having a poet in one's tribe was highly regarded in society. In addition to serving as a form of art, poetry was used as a means of conveying information and social control . Bedouin poetry, also known as nabati poetry , is often recited in the vernacular dialect . In contrast,

14152-547: The west to Misrata was completed. Later in 1937 was built the Via Balbia , a main road that connected Misrata with Tripoli and Benghazi, and in 1938 Libya governor Italo Balbo created on the outskirts of Misrata the new cities of "Gioda" and "Crispi". In January 1939, the Kingdom of Italy created the 4th Shore , with Libya's four coastal provinces of Tripoli, Misrata, Bengasi, and Derna becoming an integral part of metropolitan Italy. The last railway development in Libya done by

14274-574: The westernmost parts of the Maghreb, including what is now Morocco, remained outside of Arab caliphal rule. In this vacuum, various principalities arose in the region, such as the Midrarid Emirate in eastern Morocco, led by a Zenata Miknasa tribe, to which the foundation of the city of Sijilmasa is attributed. In 868, under the leadership of the Abd al-Razzaq, the Berber Khariji Sufri tribes of Madyuna, Ghayata and Miknasa formed

14396-680: The whole of the West Bank, including 27,000 people under Israeli military control in Area C . Unlike Negev Bedouins , West Bank Bedouins are not Israeli citizens . Bedouin communities in the West bank have been targeted with forcible relocations to townships to accommodate the growth of illegal Israeli settlements on the outskirts of East Jerusalem . Bedouins also live in the Gaza strip , including 5,000 in Om al-Nasr . However,

14518-553: Was established by the Interior Ministry on 28 January 2004. Israel is currently building or enlarging some 13 towns and cities in the Negev. According to the general planning, all of them will be fully equipped with the relevant infrastructure: schools, medical clinics, postal offices, etc. and they also will have electricity, running water and waste control. Several new industrial zones meant to fight unemployment are planned, some are already being constructed, like Idan HaNegev in

14640-549: Was established. The earliest Arab tribes emerged from Bedouins. By the time of the Roman Empire's establishment, the Bedouin national identity had been established and they were recognizable as a single people with often warring "families, clans, and tribes". A major source of income for this people was the taxation of caravans, and tributes collected from non-Bedouin settlements. They also earned income by transporting goods and people in caravans pulled by domesticated camels across

14762-463: Was launched connecting the airport to Tripoli. Zenata The Zenata ( Berber languages : Iznaten ; Arabic : زناتة , romanized :  Zanāta ) are a group of Berber tribes, historically one of the largest Berber confederations along with the Sanhaja and Masmuda . Their lifestyle was either nomadic or semi-nomadic. The 14th-century historiographer Ibn Khaldun reports that

14884-536: Was shelled by artillery, tanks, and snipers for over 40 days and had its water supply shut off by Gaddafi's forces. By late April, over 1,000 people in the city were reported killed while around 3,000 were injured. With air support from NATO which entered the conflict on the rebels' side on March 19, and a vital sea-based life line from neighbouring country the Island of Malta, anti-Gaddafi forces managed to force loyalist troops to retreat on April 21, gaining control of most of

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