Gaza

Gaza (Arabic Ghazze), principal city of the Gaza Strip. Gaza is located on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea, north of the Sinai Peninsula and southwest of Jerusalem, on a road that links Egypt with central Israel. Along with the rest of the Gaza Strip, Gaza came under Israeli occupation in 1967. Gaza is the economic center for a region in which citrus fruits and other crops are grown. 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. Points of interest in Gaza include the Great Mosque, a structure built during the Crusades and later transformed into a mosque; Samson's Monument, which commemorates the biblical hero Samson, who is believed to be buried under the Great Mosque; and Al Jundi, or the Square of the Unknown Soldier, built by the Egyptian army.

The residents of the Gaza Strip are Palestinian Arabs. The overwhelming majority are Muslims and the remainder are Christians. Following World War I, Gaza became part of the British mandate for Palestine. After Israel declared its independence in 1948, Egypt attacked Israel and took over Gaza and its surrounding area. Israel occupied the city and the Gaza Strip during the 1967 Six-Day War, and Gaza has remained under Israeli administration since that time.