Ain Zara
{{Infobox settlement
|official_name = Ain Zara
|other_name =
|native_name = عين زارة
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|settlement_type = Town
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|image_skyline = File:Ain Zara farm.jpg
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|image_caption = A farm in Ain Zara
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|pushpin_map = Libya
|pushpin_label_position =bottom
|pushpin_map_caption =Location in Libya
|subdivision_type = Country
|subdivision_name = {{flag|Libya}}
|subdivision_type2 = District
|subdivision_name2 = Tripoli
|subdivision_type3 = Municipality
|subdivision_name3 = Ain Zara
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|population_blank2 =Sunni Islam
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|timezone = UTC+2
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|coordinates = {{coord|32|48|48|N|13|16|11|E|region:LY|display=inline,title}}
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|elevation_m = 36
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Ain Zara is a town and oasis in western Libya, located in the region of Tripoli.
History
In ancient times it was an important agricultural center. Located in the surroundings of Ain Zara are the remnants of a fourth-century Christian necropolis.{{Cite web|url=http://www.slsgazetteer.org/722/|title = Qasr ad-Duirat | HGL}}
During the Italo-Turkish War, Ain Zara witnessed the first known use of airplanes in war, with Italian Army Air Corps Blériot XI and Nieuport IV monoplanes bombing the Ottoman camp at Ain Zara.Buckley (1999), p.38
In the aftermath, Ain Zara was occupied by Italian troops on December 4, 1911 after heavy fighting with Ottoman forces. After capturing Ain Zara, Italian forces fortified the area and built a new railway section that linked Ain Zara to Tripoli.Stefano Maggi."Le ferrovie nell'Africa italiana", p.12Bruce Vandervort, Verso la quarta sponda. La guerra italiana per la Libia (1911-1912), p. 306.
In later history, during the Second Libyan Civil War, about 400 prisoners escaped from a prison in the town on September 2, 2018 amid fighting between rival militias for control of the area.[https://www.cbsnews.com/news/libya-prison-escape-tripoli-clashes-rival-factions-around-ain-zara-prison/ Hundreds of prisoners escape amid chaos in Libyan capital]
See also
Notes
{{Reflist}}
References
- Bruce Vandervort, Verso la quarta sponda. La guerra italiana per la Libia (1911-1912), Rome, Italian Army General Staff, 2012.
- Maggi, Stefano. Le ferrovie nell’Africa italiana: aspetti economici, sociali e strategici, seminario "Nineteenth century transport history. Current trends and new problems".Istituto Universitario Europeo, Fiesole, 1994
Category:Populated places in Tripoli District, Libya
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