Arish, also known as El-Arish, is the capital and largest city of the North Sinai Governorate of Egypt. Situated on the Mediterranean coast, it holds significant historical and strategic importance. This article provides a detailed look into the city's history, geography, and modern developments.
Location of Arish in the Sinai Peninsula
Location and Geography
ʻArīsh is located at the mouth of Wadi al-Arish, a 250 kilometres (160 mi) long ephemeral watercourse. The city lies on the Mediterranean coast, 344 kilometres (214 mi) northeast of Cairo and 45 kilometres (28 mi) west of the Egypt-Gaza border. M. Arish is in the northern Sinai, about 50 kilometres (31 mi) from the Rafah Border Crossing with the Gaza Strip. It is characterized by its clear blue waters, soft white sand, and fruitful palm trees scattered on its coast.
Historical Background
In antiquity and the Early Middle Ages, the city was known as Rinokoroura (Ancient Greek: Ῥινοκόρουρα, Coptic: ϩⲣⲓⲛⲟⲕⲟⲣⲟⲩⲣⲁ). There are several hypothetical possibilities for the origin of the modern name of the city, which is first mentioned under it in the 9th century. One possibility is that the name might be an Arab phonetic transcription of a pre-existing toponym. Another possibility is that the name el-Arish was given to a city that already existed in the Byzantine period. A third possibility is that the name el-Arish was created when a new settlement of some "huts" (Arabic: عرش, romanized: ʕarš) was established in the 7th or 8th century.
The foundation of the city is closely linked to the etymology of its name. Thus modern scholars, following the version given by Seneca, believe that in the 4th century BC, a Persian king, believed to be either Artaxerxes II or Artaxerxes III, conducted a campaign in Syria where he punished people, possibly a tribe, by mutilating their noses. As a result, the places where these people came from or relocated to were given new names that reflected their disfigurement. When the city became a part of the Ptolemaic Empire, an Egyptian tradition emerged that may have transformed the Persian king into an Ethiopian king named Actisanes.
Read also: Culinary Traditions of North Africa
The earliest reliable Christian reference to Rinokoloura can be found in Athanasius's Epistula ad Serapionem, in which Salomon was appointed as bishop of Rinokoloura, possibly in 339 AD. Hieronymus reported that in the early 5th century the inhabitants of Rinokoloura and other nearby cities spoke Syrian. The story of Hesychios of Jerusalem reveals the existence of a wadi near Rinokoloura.
New fortifications were constructed at the original site by the Ottoman Empire in 1560. Theodor Herzl, the founder of Zionism, proposed ʻArīsh as a Jewish homeland since neither Sultan Abdul Hamid II nor Kaiser Wilhelm II supported settlement in Palestine. During World War I, the fort was destroyed by British bombers. It was later the location of the 45th Stationary Hospital which treated casualties of the Palestine campaign. In December 1916, during World War I, the Anzac Mounted Division and other British Empire units captured the 'Arish area from Ottoman forces. El-ʻArīsh Military Cemetery, designed by Robert Lorimer, was built in 1919 for Commonwealth personnel who died during World War I.
ʻArīsh was briefly controlled by Israeli forces, during both the 1948 Palestine war and the 1956 Suez War. In 1967 there was a massacre of Egyptian prisoners of war by the Israeli Defense Forces during the Six Day War. According to the Egyptian Organization for Human Rights, the Israeli Defense Forces massacred "hundreds" of Egyptian prisoners of war and wounded soldiers in the Sinai Peninsula, on 8 June 1967.
Modern Developments
North Sinai is targeted by Egyptian government planners to divert population growth from the high-density Nile Delta. The city is served by El Arish International Airport. The Northern Coastal Highway runs from El-Qantarah at the Suez Canal through Arish to the Gaza border crossing at Rafah. The railway line from Cairo is under re-construction with formation works completed only as far as Bir al-Abed, west of Arish. The route was formerly part of the Palestine Railways built during World War I and World War II to connect Egypt with Turkey.
The city is the site of a deep-water seaport capable of serving ships up to 30,000 tonnes, the only such port on the Sinai Peninsula. Arish became a staging point for relief efforts into Gaza during the Gaza war. Its port served as a point to receive relief supplies and host hospital ships.
Read also: Comparing Africa and North America
SeaRates.com offers competitive shipping solutions for delivery LCL, FCL, oversized, bulk, break bulk and liquid cargoes from Arish, Qesm Thaleth Al Arish, North Sinai Governorate, Egypt to Freetown, Sierra Leone. SeaRates.com provides competitive shipping quotes 24/7, good packing, delivery of your products from Arish, Qesm Thaleth Al Arish, North Sinai Governorate, Egypt to Freetown, Sierra Leone.
Climate
Below is the average weather forecast for Arish, Qesm Thaleth:
| Day | Temperature |
|---|---|
| Monday | 19°C | 27°C |
| Tuesday | 21°C | 25°C |
| Wednesday | 21°C | 24°C |
| Thursday | 20°C | 24°C |
| Friday | 19°C | 23°C |
| Saturday | 18°C | 23°C |
This information provides a glimpse into the climatic conditions of Qesm Thaleth Al Arish.
From Arish, Egypt
Read also: Complex Realities of Northern Black Life
Popular articles:
tags: #Egypt
