Benghazi
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Benghazi (Arabic بنغازي, transliterated Banġāzī) is a seaport in Libya, Africa. The present name is derived from that of a pious benefactor of the city named Ghazi or "Sidi Ghazi," as the locals called him, who died about 1450. The city was renamed "Bani Ghazi". The population was 500,120 in 1995 (census) and has increased to 660,147 in the 2004 census.
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History
Modern Benghazi, on the Gulf of Sidra, lies a little southwest of the site of the ancient Greek city of Berenice or Berenicis. That city was traditionally founded in 446 BC, by a brother of the king of Cyrene, but got the name Berenice only when it was refounded in the 3rd century BCE under the patronage of Berenice (Berenike), the daughter of Magas, king of Cyrene, and wife of Ptolemy III Euergetes, the ruler of Egypt. The new city was later given the name Hesperides, in reference to the Hesperides, the guardians of the mythic western paradise. The name may have also referred to green oases in low-lying areas in the nearby coastal plain.Benghazi become a roman city and prospered for 600 years. The city superseded Cyrene and Barca as the chief center of Cyrenaica after the 3rd century CE and during the Persian attacks, but when the Arabs came, in 642-643, it had dwindled to an insignificant village among magnificent ruins.
In 1578 the Turks invaded Benghazi and it was ruled from Tripoli by the Karamanlis from 1711-1835, then it passed under direct Ottoman rule until 1911. Under the Ottomans, Levantines, Maltese, Greeks and Jews formed the trading community, Turks, Arabs and Berbers formed ruling castes, and Black Africans acted as labourers and domestics. The city was a port in the slave trade that supplied Islamic markets, until European consuls agitated for its suppression not long before World War I. Under later Ottoman rule the squalor of Benghazi was oppressive; in 1911, the Encyclopaedia Britannica noted, it was the most impoverished of the Ottoman provinces. Benghazi had neither a paved road nor telegraph service, and the harbor was too silted to permit the access of shipping. Greek and Italian sponge fishermen worked its coastal waters. The city was a center for Islamist activists. In 1858 and again in 1874 Benghazi was devastated by bubonic plague. In 1911 benghazi was freed from the ottoman empire, and become part of italy under the king, the city was impruved and a lot of italians were brought to work. Under the Italian colonial occupation, particularly under Mussolini, Cyrenaica suffered ruthless repression of the Libyan resistance. In 1931 the Libyan patriot Omar al-Mucktar was hanged at Souluk, a village just west of Benghazi, effectively ending Libyan resistance. Heavily bombed in World War II, Benghazi was rebuilt as a gleaming showplace of modern Libya. The city was bombed by the United States, 17 April, 1986. 6-7 Sept 1995 saw clashes between police and militant Islamists in Benghazi. Thousands of arrests were made, including many Sudanese expatriates.
In the late 1990s a children's hospital in Benghazi was the site of an outbreak of HIV infection that spread to over 400 patients. Libya blamed the outbreak on Bulgarian nurses and a Palestinian doctor, who were arrested and eventually sentenced to death. As of end of 2005, the case remains unresolved as the supreme court has ordered a retrial.
University
The University of Benghazi, named Garyounis after the Palestinian refugee, was founded in 1955.
External links
The February 2006 Clashes in Benghazi City
"Anti-Qadhafi" report:
On February 17th, 2006, the Qadhafi regime orchestrated a demonstration in front of the Italian consulate in Benghazi, Libya. Publicly, the regime claimed the demonstration was against an Italian minister's support for the Danish cartoonists. In truth, the demonstration was orchestrated to intimidate the Italians who had pledged to re-open the investigation of Imam Musa Sadr disappearance. Mr. Sadr is a Lebanese Shiite cleric who disappeared in 1978 during a visit to Libya.
The demonstration deviated from the script that was defined by the regime when the crowed reacted negatively after a regime operative began reading a statement of support for the "Global Leader of the Revolution" (Qadhafi). The crowed drowned the speaker with noise, then they headed toward the Italian consulate, where a Libyan security officer, shot and killed a 14-year old boy, who climbed to consulate roof to take down the Italian flag. At that point, the demonstration evolved into a riot for the poor and impoverished against the Libyan regime. In addition to torching the Italian consulate, rioters also torched police and security cars, the treasury and social security buildings and headquarters for the police and the Revolutionary Committees. The rioters also stormed the detention centers and forced the Internal Security to free those it arrested. In an effort to isolate Benghazi and prepare for an eventual violent assault, text messaging was disabled and phone communication to the city was also disrupted. It was reported that rioting has spread to the coastal cities of Tubroq and Derna.
The official count for the dead is 13, but doctors at Benghazi hospitals say the total number is much higher. The Qadhafi regime has been applying impoverishing and extreme force to pacify and intimidate the people of Libya's second largest city, because the city has been the source of continued opposition. As a result it was natural that the demonstration turned into a riot of the impoverished and oppressed.
As of the morning of Wednesday the 22nd, there have been multiple and authenticated accounts that Benghazi is under siege by Qadhafi's security and units of Commandoes and a violent assault is in the planning stage. Mussa Kussa who is the head of Libyan External Security Organization is leading the efforts to crackdown and eventual violent assault on the city.
"Danish Cartoons" report:
On Friday the people of Benghazi went on a peaceful protest against the cartoon drawing of the Prophet Mohammed in front of the Italian Embassy. This event was protesting against an Italian Minister warring the cartoon. Two young boys took two flags, which were on the embassy and burned the flags. Police came and killed the two young boys in front of all people with cool blood. After the people attacked the police and police fired at the crowd killing more then 11 people according to the Libyan news. However people at the event say at lest 20 are dead.
From Benghazi Man To be finished.
"News updates" 24th-2-2006:
Benghazi is going crazy and now news about that in the media (CNN, BBC, Al Jazeera ...etc) what is going on. Are they supporting the Libyan Gov. or they are out of the pictures I do not know. When a dog get killed they bring that in the news, but when kids and people die nothing is reported. Benghazi people need help........
Since two days ago Benghazi is under army control people are not allowed to walk after 8:00pm, some army forces (From the east part of Libya) which were at some gov. posts, when the crowds came to attack these place said " are getting 60 LD (46$ salary) the government people are getting Millons, let thoes guys protect these buildings, we will not stop you, we will not say anything go" a moment of trouth, action started. The Libyan gov. actted and brought other trops from the west (west part of Libya) and as you can see on a picture that I will attached it looks like Iraq now.ar:بنغازي bg:Бенгази de:Banghazi es:Bengasi fa:بنغازی fr:Benghazi id:Benghazi it:Bengasi he:בנגאזי nl:Benghazi pl:Bengazi pt:Bengasi fi:Bengasi