sirte

{{Redirect|Sirt||SIRT (disambiguation){{!}}SIRT}}

{{Infobox settlement

| name = Sirte

| official_name =

| other_name =

| native_name = سِرْت

| native_name_lang = ar

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| pushpin_map_caption = Location in Libya

| subdivision_type = Country

| subdivision_name = {{flag|Libya}}

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| subdivision_name1 = Tripolitania

| subdivision_type2 = District

| subdivision_name2 = Sirte District

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| population_total = 128,123

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| coordinates = {{coord|31|12|18|N|16|35|19|E|region:LY|display=inline,title}}

| elevation_footnotes =

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File:Sirte.jpg

Sirte ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|s|ɜr|t}}; {{langx|ar|سِرْت}}, {{Audio|Ar-ly-Surt.ogg|pronunciation}}), also spelled Sirt, Surt, Sert or Syrte, is a city in Libya. It is located south of the Gulf of Sirte, almost right in the middle between Tripoli and Benghazi. It is famously known for its battles, ethnic groups and loyalty to former Libyan ruler Muammar Gaddafi. Due to developments in the First Libyan Civil War, it was briefly the capital of Libya as Tripoli's successor after the Fall of Tripoli from 1 September to 20 October 2011. The settlement was established in the early 20th century by the Italians, at the site of a 19th-century fortress built by the Ottomans. It grew into a city after World War II.

Contrary to popular belief, Sirte was not Muammar Gaddafi's birthplace, as wrongly reported. Gaddafi's birthplace was in a village 20 km south of Sirte, which is called Qasr Abu Hadi. The inhabitants of this village were farmers. Just a few significant people from the Gaddafi tribe, of whom some were born in Sirte, were appointed to government roles during the time of the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya until the NATO-led invasion of Libya in 2011.{{cite news |url=https://www.economist.com/news/middle-east-and-africa/21580161-muammar-qaddafis-hometown-band-loyalists-flaunt-his-favourite-colour-where |title=Libya's opposition: Where green refuses to fade |newspaper=The Economist |date=29 June 2013 }} Sirte was favoured by the Gaddafi government.{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-16961376|agency=BBC News|title=Should Libya rebuild Gaddafi hometown of Sirte?|date=9 February 2012|access-date=8 September 2021}} The city was the final major stronghold of Gaddafi loyalists in the civil war and Gaddafi was killed there by rebel forces on 20 October 2011 after sustaining major injury caused by French Air Force Bombs discharged as part of the NATO intervention. During the battle, Sirte was left almost completely in ruins, with many buildings destroyed or damaged.{{Cite web|title=Sirte, Libya: Gadhafi's hometown seems largely destroyed |date=16 October 2011 |newspaper=The News Tribune |location=Tacoma, Washington |url=http://www.thenewstribune.com/2011/10/16/1866950/sirte-libya-gadhafis-hometown.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111224002556/http://www.thenewstribune.com/2011/10/16/1866950/sirte-libya-gadhafis-hometown.html |archive-date=24 December 2011 |url-status=dead }} Six months after the civil war, almost 60,000 inhabitants, more than 70 percent of the pre-war population, had returned.Dobbs, L. (16 April 2012). [http://allafrica.com/stories/201204161573.html Libya: Displaced Return to Rebuild Gaddafi's Hometown - Face Needs?] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120417095704/http://allafrica.com/stories/201204161573.html |date=17 April 2012 }} allAfrica. Accessed 22 April 2012

History

= Early history =

Sirte is built near the site of the ancient Phoenician city of Macomedes-Euphranta,Wallace, Jonathan; Wilkinson, Bill. Doing business with Libya, p. 197. Kogan Page Publishers, 2004. {{ISBN|978-0-7494-3992-7}} which was an important link on the road along the Mediterranean Sea littoral. It is the last confirmed place where the Punic language was spoken, in the 5th century CE. The region had no recognized administrative centre and was infested for centuries by bandits. In Classical times, the coast was "proverbially dangerous to shipping",{{cite book|chapter=Syrtis|page=1897|author=P. G. W. Glare|title=Oxford Latin Dictionary|place=Oxford|publisher=The Clarendon Press|year=1982|isbn=0-19-864224-5}} called "inhospita Syrtis" in Virgil's Aeneid.Book IV, line 41

John Milton's Paradise Lost Book 2 lines 939-940 speaks of "a boggy Syrtis, neither sea/Nor good dry land".

The medieval city of Surt was located some 55 km east of the present-day city, at a site now known as al-Mudayna or Madina Sultan.{{cite book |last1=Hamdani |first1=A. |editor1-last=Bosworth |editor1-first=C.E. |editor2-last=van Donzel |editor2-first=E. |editor3-last=Heinrichs |editor3-first=W.P. |editor4-last=Lecomte |editor4-first=G. |title=The Encyclopaedia of Islam, Vol. IX (SAN-SZE) |date=1997 |publisher=Brill |location=Leiden |isbn=90-04-10422-4 |pages=894–5 |url=https://archive.org/details/EncyclopaediaDictionaryIslamMuslimWorldEtcGibbKramerScholars.13 |access-date=18 May 2022 |chapter=SŪRT}} After the Umayyad conquest of North Africa, Berbers from the Butr confederation settled in Surt, and around the middle of the 8th century they converted to Ibadi Islam along with the surrounding region. A mosque was probably built at Surt during this period, although no authors mention a mosque in Surt until the 11th century. The most detailed early description of the city was written by Ibn Hawqal, who passed through Surt in 947 on his way to al-Mahdiyyah (which was then the capital of the Fatimid Caliphate). Ibn Hawqal described Surt as being "a bow-shot away from the sea, built on hard, sandy ground with strong walls of mud and brick". He described it as inhabited by Berbers, who stored rainwater in cisterns and were engaged in various forms of agriculture and livestock herding. They grew dates, grapes, and other fruits, and kept goats and camels. Another local industry was alum mining, which was exported. According to Ibn Hawqal, Surt at this point was wealthier than nearby Ajdabiya.

Surt was probably fortified by the Fatimid caliph al-Mu'izz around 965, in preparation for the Fatimid conquest of Egypt under his general Jawhar al-Siqilli. The Fatimids founded the new city of Cairo to serve as their new capital in Egypt. After they moved there, the Surt region became a battleground between the Fatimids and the Zirid dynasty of Kairouan. The Banu Khazrun of Tripoli also controlled Surt for a while as Fatimid allies. Around 1037, the Banu Hilal began to settle in the Surt region. Somewhat later, al-Bakri described Surt as "a large city by the sea" with a mosque, a hammam, and bazaars (these three features are mentioned for the first time here). He listed three gates in the city walls: Qiblī (facing southeast), Jawfī (facing inland), and "a small one facing the sea". There were no suburbs outside the walls. He also noted, "its animals are goats and their meat is juicy and tender, the like of which is not found in Egypt." Al-Bakri also alluded to a merchant community including Arabs, Berbers, Persians, and Copts.

In the late Fatimid period, Surt began to decline - it seems to have lost its position at the intersection of east-west and north-south trade routes. The 12th-century author al-Idrisi apparently visited the Surt region and wrote about the city's decline. The 13th-century author Ali ibn Sa'id al-Maghribi wrote that its forts were still standing. At some point thereafter, the old city of Surt was finally abandoned.

Since the 19th century and particularly since the 1960s, the old city of Surt has been explored by archaeologists, mostly based on al-Bakri's reports. Excavations have revealed the old city walls, enclosing an area of 184,003 square meters, as well as the gates, the forts, the mosque, and the city streets. No evidence of the harbor has been found, though.

=Modern history=

In 1842 the Ottomans built a fortress at Marsat al Zaafran ("saffron harbour") which became known as Qasr al Zaafran ("saffron castle"), and later as Qasr Sert. The fortress was built under sultan Abdülmecid I as part of the restoration of Ottoman control over Tripolitania after the fall of the Karamanli dynasty. It was around this fortification, which was taken over and repaired by the Italians in 1912, that the settlement of Sirte grew up.Goodchild, Richard George. Libyan studies: select papers of the late R. G. Goodchild, p. 136. P. Elek, 1976. {{ISBN|978-0-236-17680-9}}

Sirte served as an administrative centre under Italian rule.Ham, Anthony. Libya, p. 121. Lonely Planet, 2007. {{ISBN|978-1-74059-493-6}} During the North African Campaign of the Second World War there were no noteworthy events in this location, which was characterised at the time as "a shabby little Arab village of mud huts, clustered on the banks of a foul-smelling stream."Barker, A.J. Afrika Korps, p. 16. Bison Books, 1978

The village grew into a prominent town after the Second World War for two reasons – the discovery and exploitation of oil nearby and the birth of Muammar Gaddafi in 1942 in a tent at Qasr Abu Hadi, some {{convert|20|km|mi}} south of Sirte. He was sent to the primary school at Sirte at the age of ten.Simons, Geoffrey Leslie. Libya: the struggle for survival, p. 170. Palgrave Macmillan, 1993. {{ISBN|978-0-312-08997-9}}

==Gaddafi era==

After seizing power in 1969, Gaddafi transformed Sirte into a showcase of his self-proclaimed revolution, carrying out an extensive program of public works to expand the former village into a small city. After 1988, most government departments and the Libyan parliament were relocated from Tripoli to Sirte, although Tripoli remained formally the capital of the country."Libya". Europa World Year 2004 Volume II, p. 2651. Taylor & Francis Group, 2004. {{ISBN|978-1-85743-255-8}}

Al-Tahadi University was established in 1991.

In 1999, Gaddafi proposed the idea of creating a "United States of Africa" with Sirte as its administrative centre. Ambitious plans to build a new international airport and seaport were announced in 2007.The Report: Libya 2008, p. 73. Oxford Business Group, 2008. {{ISBN|978-1-902339-11-5}}

In 1999, the Sirte Declaration was signed in the city by the Organisation of African Unity in a conference that was hosted by Gaddafi. In 2007 he also hosted talks in Sirte to broker a peace agreement between the government of Sudan and warring factions in Darfur.{{cite news|title=Struggle to salvage Darfur talks|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7066792.stm|access-date=29 March 2011|newspaper=BBC News|date=29 October 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120818174231/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7066792.stm|archive-date=18 August 2012|url-status=live}}

In 2008, China Railway Construction Corporation won a $2.6 billion bid in Libya to build a west-to-east coastal railway {{convert|352|km|mi|abbr=on}} from Khoms to Sirte and a south-to-west railway {{convert|800|km|mi|abbr=on}} long for iron ore transport from the southern city Sabha to Misrata.{{Cite web |url=http://www.crcc.cn/ |title=China Railway Construction Corporation website |access-date=14 January 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191218093237/http://www.crcc.cn/ |archive-date=18 December 2019 |url-status=live }}

==First Civil War==

{{Further|Libyan civil war (2011)|Second Gulf of Sidra offensive|Battle of Sirte (2011)}}

On 5 March 2011, anti-Gaddafi forces said they were preparing to capture the city.{{cite news|last=Tomasevic|first=Goran|title=In disorganized surge, Libya's rebels push west along shifting front line|url=http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Middle-East/2011/0305/In-disorganized-surge-Libya-s-rebels-push-west-along-shifting-front-line|access-date=6 March 2011|newspaper=Christian Science Monitor|date=5 March 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110307131634/http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Middle-East/2011/0305/In-disorganized-surge-Libya-s-rebels-push-west-along-shifting-front-line|archive-date=7 March 2011|url-status=live}} However, on 6 March, the rebel advance was stopped during the Battle of Bin Jawad before reaching Sirte. Government forces launched a counter-offensive that recaptured Ra's Lanuf{{cite web |title=Rebel forces retreat from Ras Lanuf |date=10 March 2011 |access-date=10 March 2011 |url=http://english.aljazeera.net/news/africa/2011/03/201131041228856242.html |publisher=Al Jazeera |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120725173233/http://www.aljazeera.com/news/africa/2011/03/201131041228856242.html |archive-date=25 July 2012 |url-status=live }}{{cite web |title=Rebel push stalls outside Ras Lanuf |date=10 March 2011 |url=http://english.aljazeera.net/indepth/spotlight/libya/2011/03/2011310131427537949.html |access-date=10 March 2011 |publisher=Al Jazeera |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120713184826/http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/spotlight/libya/2011/03/2011310131427537949.html |archive-date=13 July 2012 |url-status=live }} and continued to advance as far as the outskirts of the de facto rebel capital of Benghazi. Under United Nations Security Council Resolution 1973, several Western and Arab countries then intervened with air and missile strikes, which turned the tide again in favour of the rebels. On 28 March, Al Jazeera reported that Sirte had been claimed to be taken by rebel forces overnight with little resistance,{{Cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oPpCJkCA_VI|title = - YouTube|website = YouTube}} but other news organisations later reported that rebels and Gaddafi forces were fighting on the road between Bin Jawad and Sirte.{{cite news|title=Libya: Rebels battle for road to Gaddafi hometown Sirte|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-12885395|publisher=BBC News|access-date=28 March 2011|date=28 March 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110328171804/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-12885395|archive-date=28 March 2011|url-status=live}} By 30 March, Gaddafi loyalists had forced the rebels out of Bin Jawad and Ra's Lanuf and once again removed the immediate threat of an attack on Sirte.{{cite news | url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-12906562 | work=BBC News | title=Libya: Gaddafi's fighters force rebel retreat | date=30 March 2011 | access-date=20 June 2018 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110330180526/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-12906562 | archive-date=30 March 2011 | url-status=live }}

In August, the city faced a more severe threat from the rebels as the loyalist position deteriorated rapidly, with rebels making gains on multiple fronts. As Tripoli came under attack, other rebel forces based in Benghazi broke the military stalemate in the eastern desert, taking Brega and Ra's Lanuf. At the same time, rebels in Misrata pushed eastward along the coast towards Sirte, which then faced a pincer movement from the rebels on two fronts.{{cite news | title=Libyan rebels storm Gaddafi compound in Tripoli | url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle-east/appearance-by-gaddafis-son-tempers-rebel-hopes-of-victory/2011/08/23/gIQAZMWZYJ_print.html | last1=Erdbrink | first1=Thomas | last2=Sly | first2=Liz | newspaper=The Washington Post | date=2011-08-23 | access-date=2011-08-23 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160311065828/https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle-east/appearance-by-gaddafis-son-tempers-rebel-hopes-of-victory/2011/08/23/gIQAZMWZYJ_print.html | archive-date=11 March 2016 | url-status=live }} On 24 August, rebel units were reported as being {{convert|56|km|mi|abbr=on}} from the city.{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2011/aug/24/libya-rebels-advance-gaddafi-home-town|title=Libyan rebels advance on Gaddafi's home town|last=Stephen|first=Christopher|date=2011-08-24|work=The Guardian|publisher=www.guardian.co.uk|access-date=2011-08-24|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130930193131/http://www.theguardian.com/world/2011/aug/24/libya-rebels-advance-gaddafi-home-town|archive-date=30 September 2013|url-status=live}} On 27 August, Bin Jawad – about 150 km east – was once again recaptured by the rebels. It was also reported that the National Transitional Council were in negotiations with tribal figures from the city for it to surrender to rebel forces.{{cite news|url=https://af.reuters.com/article/egyptNews/idAFL5E7JN27R20110823|title=Libya rebels in "fierce" fight for Sabha--spokesman|date=2011-08-23|work=Reuters|access-date=2011-08-24|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160604104246/http://af.reuters.com/article/egyptNews/idAFL5E7JN27R20110823|archive-date=4 June 2016|url-status=dead}}

In a radio address on 1 September 2011, Gaddafi declared Sirte the new capital of the Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, replacing the former capital Tripoli, which had been captured by rebels.{{cite news|title=From voice said to be Gadhafi, a defiant message to his foes|url=http://www.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/africa/09/01/libya.war/index.html?hpt=hp_t2|access-date=1 September 2011|newspaper=CNN|date=1 September 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121110134127/http://www.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/africa/09/01/libya.war/index.html?hpt=hp_t2|archive-date=10 November 2012|url-status=live}}

Anti-Gaddafi forces surrounded the city during September 2011 and began a long, difficult battle there, hoping to bring the war to an end. On 20 October, after suffering massive casualties during a siege that lasted over a month, NTC fighters mounted a major offensive and took control of the last remaining district of Sirte, "Number Two", that was in the hands of regime loyalists. Muammar Gaddafi attempted to flee the city, but he was injured and hid in a large drainage pipe before being captured by NTC fighters.{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/middle-east-live/2011/oct/20/gaddafi-killed-sirte-falls-live|title=Gaddafi killed as Sirte falls|work=The Guardian|location=UK|date=20 October 2011|access-date=20 October 2011 |first=Adam |last=Gabbatt}}David Martin. [https://www.cbsnews.com/news/who-shot-qaddafi-was-it-his-own-bodyguards-20-10-2011/ "Who shot Qaddafi? Was it his own bodyguards?"]. CBS News, 20 October 2011. Retrieved 21 October 2011. He was killed in custody less than an hour later.{{cite news|url=http://english.aljazeera.net/news/africa/2011/10/20111020111520869621.html|agency=Al Jazeera English|title=Muammar Gaddafi killed as Sirte falls|date=20 October 2011|access-date=20 October 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111020195537/http://english.aljazeera.net/news/africa/2011/10/20111020111520869621.html|archive-date=20 October 2011|url-status=live}}

Sirte was left heavily damaged by a month of intense fighting, which was preceded by NATO airstrikes throughout the war,{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/libya/8838122/Gaddafis-final-stronghold-falls-Libyan-forces-conquer-Sirte.html|agency=The Daily Telegraph|title=Gaddafi's final stronghold falls: Libyan forces conquer Sirte|date=20 October 2011|access-date=20 October 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111020123323/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/libya/8838122/Gaddafis-final-stronghold-falls-Libyan-forces-conquer-Sirte.html|archive-date=20 October 2011|url-status=live}} and was considered to have been subjected to the most damage of any Libyan city during the civil war.{{Cite news|date=31 May 2013 |title=Sirte and Misrata rebuild in wake of Libya conflict |newspaper=France 24 |url=http://www.france24.com/en/20130530-sirte-misrata-rebuild-wake-libya-conflict |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130531224740/http://www.france24.com/en/20130530-sirte-misrata-rebuild-wake-libya-conflict |archive-date=31 May 2013 |url-status=live |df=dmy}} Many homes were ransacked and looted by fighters, angering residents including those loyal to Gaddafi and those sympathetic to the revolution.{{cite news|url=http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Middle-East/2011/Oct-20/151711-sirte-fighter-indignant-at--level-of-citys-destruction.ashx#axzz1bKo54RwM|agency=The Daily Star|title=Sirte fighter indignant at level of city's destruction|date=20 October 2011|access-date=20 October 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111020185441/http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Middle-East/2011/Oct-20/151711-sirte-fighter-indignant-at--level-of-citys-destruction.ashx#axzz1bKo54RwM|archive-date=20 October 2011|url-status=live}} Many streets and buildings also experienced flooding as water mains were destroyed, though it was unclear by which side.{{cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/africa/through-hell-and-high-water-final-push-in-battle-for-sirte-2370225.html|agency=The Independent|date=14 October 2011|access-date=20 October 2011|title=Through hell and high water: final push in battle for Sirte|first=Paul|last=Peachey|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111016163311/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/africa/through-hell-and-high-water-final-push-in-battle-for-sirte-2370225.html|archive-date=16 October 2011|url-status=live}} Landmarks like the Ouagadougou Conference Center, which became an impromptu fortress for the city's defenders during the battle, were ruined by artillery fire and blasts. A number of Libyan residents and fighters described the city as unrecognisable after weeks of siege.{{cite news|url=http://www.news24.com/Africa/News/Gaddafis-dream-in-ruins-20111013|agency=News24|title=Gaddafi's dream in ruins|date=13 October 2011|access-date=20 October 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111015142651/http://www.news24.com/Africa/News/Gaddafis-dream-in-ruins-20111013|archive-date=15 October 2011|url-status=live}}

==Postwar==

In April 2012, almost six months after the civil war, more than 70 percent of the inhabitants had returned to Sirte. Rebuilding of the city started, although unexploded ordnance still posed a great risk to civilians. In February 2012, some local residents said they felt abandoned by the National Transitional Council (NTC), but the new government had promised to rebuild the city and Deputy Prime Minister Mustafa Abushagur insisted this would happen.{{Cite news |author=Head, Jonathan |date=9 February 2012 |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-16961376 |title=Should Libya rebuild Gaddafi hometown of Sirte? |newspaper=BBC News |access-date=17 February 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120216193722/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-16961376 |archive-date=16 February 2012 |url-status=live }} Some local rebuilding was done in 2012 and 2013, but reconstruction of municipal services did not begin until a 9 million Libyan dinars reconstruction project started in 2014.{{Cite news|first=Jamal |last=Adel |date=5 June 2014 |title=Town of Sirte launches massive reconstruction project |newspaper=Libya Herald |url=http://www.libyaherald.com/2014/06/05/town-of-sirte-launches-massive-reconstruction-project |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140608161246/http://www.libyaherald.com/2014/06/05/town-of-sirte-launches-massive-reconstruction-project |archive-date=8 June 2014 |url-status=dead |df=dmy |url-access=subscription }}

===ISIL occupation===

During the widespread chaos and civil war that followed the revolution and led to the erosion of territorial control under the General National Congress (GNC) (which had succeeded the NTC) and the new GNC (NGNC), local loyalists to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), which had previously seized the port city of Derna, launched an attack in March 2015 to capture Sirte, which was then occupied by the Libya Shield Force, an NGNC-linked militia. Sirte fell to ISIL loyalists in May 2015.{{Cite news|title=Libia nel caos, l'Isis conquista Sirte "Minaccia a pochi km dall'Italia" |newspaper=Corriere Della Sera |date=13 February 2015 |language=it |url=http://www.corriere.it/esteri/15_febbraio_13/libia-l-ambasciata-italiana-lasciate-subito-paese-5aad340a-b393-11e4-8ea5-42a1b52c991f.shtml |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150213213759/http://www.corriere.it/esteri/15_febbraio_13/libia-l-ambasciata-italiana-lasciate-subito-paese-5aad340a-b393-11e4-8ea5-42a1b52c991f.shtml |archive-date=13 February 2015 |url-status=live}}

Following the formation of a new Tripoli-based government, the Government of National Accord (GNA), an offensive backed by the United Nations was launched in May 2016 by GNA-aligned forces, known as the Bunyan Marsous, to recapture Sirte.{{Cite news|date=5 December 2016 |title=After 4,000 dead and wounded Bunyan Marsous finally beats IS in Sirte |newspaper=Libya Herald |url=https://www.libyaherald.com/2016/12/05/after-4000-dead-and-wounded-bunyan-marsous-finally-beats-is-in-sirte/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161208153128/https://www.libyaherald.com/2016/12/05/after-4000-dead-and-wounded-bunyan-marsous-finally-beats-is-in-sirte/ |archive-date=8 December 2016 |url-status=live |df=dmy}} After two months of advances, pro-government forces took control of ISIL's Sirte headquarters on 10 August 2016,{{Cite web| url=http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2016/08/libyan-forces-recapture-isil-headquarter-sirte-160810205046540.html | title=Libyan forces recapture ISIL headquarters in Sirte |publisher=Al Jazeera | date=11 August 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160811125732/http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2016/08/libyan-forces-recapture-isil-headquarter-sirte-160810205046540.html | archive-date=11 August 2016 |url-status=live}} although pockets of ISIL resistance continued to prolong fighting through the end of the year.{{Cite news|author=Mannocchi, Francesca |date=6 December 2016 |title=Libya's Sirte in rubble after ISIL battle |newspaper=Al Jezeera |url=http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2016/12/libya-sirte-rubble-isil-defeat-161206055401188.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161207052415/http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2016/12/libya-sirte-rubble-isil-defeat-161206055401188.html |archive-date=7 December 2016 |url-status=live}} Sirte was substantially under the control of the GNA by 6 December 2016.{{Cite news|first=Rana |last=Jawad |display-authors=etal |date=6 December 2016 |title=Libya conflict: IS 'ejected' from stronghold of Sirte |newspaper=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-38227543 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161207140404/http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-38227543 |archive-date=7 December 2016 |url-status=live |df=dmy}}{{Cite web|title=Pentagon: Islamic State has lost its safe haven in Sirte, Libya |first=Thomas |last=Joscelyn |publisher=FDD's Long War Journal (Foundation for Defense of Democracies) |date=7 December 2016 |url=http://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2016/12/pentagon-islamic-state-has-lost-its-safe-haven-in-sirte-libya.php |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161209003310/http://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2016/12/pentagon-islamic-state-has-lost-its-safe-haven-in-sirte-libya.php |archive-date=9 December 2016 |url-status=live |df=dmy}} A contributing factor to the recapture of the city were the over 400 airstrikes organized by the United States Africa Command against ISIL positions during the months-long battle. Approximately 700 Libya pro-government fighters and 2,000 ISIL loyalists died in Sirte between May and November 2016.{{Cite news|title=Casualties continue to rise in battle for Sirte |date=16 November 2016 |newspaper=Libya Herald |url=https://www.libyaherald.com/2016/11/16/casualties-continue-to-rise-in-battle-for-sirte/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161130035129/https://www.libyaherald.com/2016/11/16/casualties-continue-to-rise-in-battle-for-sirte/ |archive-date=30 November 2016|url-status=live}}

===Reconstruction===

Mayoral elections were scheduled for 12 December 2016 with the previously (2015) municipal councilmen taking office again.{{Cite news|first1=Houda |last1=Mzioudet |first2=Hadi |last2=Fornaji |date=6 December 2016 |title=Mayoral election set for Sirte and municipal elections for central Zawia and Bani Walid |newspaper=Libya Herald |url=https://www.libyaherald.com/2016/12/06/mayoral-election-set-for-sirte-and-municipal-elections-for-central-zawia-and-bani-walid/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161208151554/https://www.libyaherald.com/2016/12/06/mayoral-election-set-for-sirte-and-municipal-elections-for-central-zawia-and-bani-walid/ |archive-date=8 December 2016 |url-status=live |df=dmy}}

==Second Civil War==

The Libyan National Army fought a battle with the GNA and entered the city on 6 January 2020.{{cite web |title=Tripoli-aligned forces say they quit Libya's Sirte to avoid bloodshed |date=6 January 2020 |access-date=7 January 2020 |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-libya-security/tripoli-aligned-forces-say-they-quit-libyas-sirte-to-avoid-bloodshed-idUSKBN1Z61BP |publisher=Reuters |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200107150530/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-libya-security/tripoli-aligned-forces-say-they-quit-libyas-sirte-to-avoid-bloodshed-idUSKBN1Z61BP |archive-date=7 January 2020 |url-status=live }}

GNA forces launched an attack to capture Sirte from the LNA on 6 June 2020.{{cite news |title=Libyan army liberates Wadi Wishka, moves to Sirte |url=https://www.aa.com.tr/en/africa/libyan-army-liberates-wadi-wishka-moves-to-sirte/1867558 |access-date=6 June 2020 |work=www.aa.com.tr}}

LNA forces proposed a ceasefire backed by Egypt.{{cite news |title=Haftar proposed Libya ceasefire, says Egypt's el-Sisi |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/06/egypt-el-sisi-haftar-backs-libya-ceasefire-200606133939141.html |access-date=7 June 2020 |work=www.aljazeera.com}} However, the GNA rejected the ceasefire as they entered Sirte. Despite this, the attack was thwarted the following day, which led to the LNA retaliating by conducting airstrikes from MiG-29s on a huge Turkish convoy of military and GNA forces heading for Sirte, destroying it and resulting in heavy GNA and possibly Turkish casualties.{{cite web|url=https://bulgarianmilitary.com/2020/06/07/mig-29s-destroyed-a-huge-turkish-convoy-of-military-and-gna-forces-video/|title=MiG-29s destroyed a huge Turkish convoy of military and GNA forces (video)|publisher=Bulgarianmilitary|date=23 June 2020}}{{unreliable source|date=January 2025}}

Climate

Sirte has a hot arid climate (Köppen: BWh) with hot, dry summers and mild, somewhat rainy winters.

{{Weather box

|metric first=yes

|single line=yes

|location = Sirte (1991–2020)

|Jan record high C = 31.9

|Feb record high C = 37.7

|Mar record high C = 38.6

|Apr record high C = 43.5

|May record high C = 46.0

|Jun record high C = 47.8

|Jul record high C = 47.5

|Aug record high C = 48.5

|Sep record high C = 45.5

|Oct record high C = 44.2

|Nov record high C = 39.4

|Dec record high C = 32.0

|year record high C =

|Jan high C = 18.8

|Feb high C = 19.7

|Mar high C = 22.2

|Apr high C = 24.5

|May high C = 27.1

|Jun high C = 29.4

|Jul high C = 31.2

|Aug high C = 32.0

|Sep high C = 31.8

|Oct high C = 29.7

|Nov high C = 25.0

|Dec high C = 20.4

|year high C = 26.0

|Jan mean C = 14.2

|Feb mean C = 14.8

|Mar mean C = 17.0

|Apr mean C = 19.4

|May mean C = 22.2

|Jun mean C = 24.9

|Jul mean C = 27.0

|Aug mean C = 27.8

|Sep mean C = 27.3

|Oct mean C = 24.9

|Nov mean C = 20.0

|Dec mean C = 15.7

|year mean C = 21.3

|Jan low C = 9.6

|Feb low C = 9.9

|Mar low C = 11.8

|Apr low C = 14.3

|May low C = 17.3

|Jun low C = 20.4

|Jul low C = 22.8

|Aug low C = 23.7

|Sep low C = 22.8

|Oct low C = 20.0

|Nov low C = 15.0

|Dec low C = 11.0

|year low C = 16.6

|Jan record low C = 2.5

|Feb record low C = 3.0

|Mar record low C = 2.3

|Apr record low C = 5.0

|May record low C = 7.5

|Jun record low C = 10.0

|Jul record low C = 13.0

|Aug record low C = 16.2

|Sep record low C = 15.5

|Oct record low C = 7.5

|Nov record low C = 5.0

|Dec record low C = 3.0

|year record low C = 2.3

|rain colour = green

|Jan rain mm = 41.0

|Feb rain mm = 29.9

|Mar rain mm = 13.5

|Apr rain mm = 3.8

|May rain mm = 3.6

|Jun rain mm = 0.8

|Jul rain mm = 0.1

|Aug rain mm = 0.2

|Sep rain mm = 9.9

|Oct rain mm = 17.3

|Nov rain mm = 21.9

|Dec rain mm = 45.7

|year rain mm = 189.0

|unit rain days = 0.1 mm

|Jan rain days = 5.7

|Feb rain days = 4.4

|Mar rain days = 2.4

|Apr rain days = 0.9

|May rain days = 0.9

|Jun rain days = 0.3

|Jul rain days = 0.0

|Aug rain days = 0.0

|Sep rain days = 1.3

|Oct rain days = 2.1

|Nov rain days = 3.1

|Dec rain days = 6.0

|year rain days = 27.1

| source 1 = NOAA{{cite web

| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230914024030/https://www.nodc.noaa.gov/archive/arc0216/0253808/1.1/data/0-data/Region-1-WMO-Normals-9120/Libya/CSV/SIRTE_62019.csv

| archive-date = 14 September 2023

| url = https://www.nodc.noaa.gov/archive/arc0216/0253808/1.1/data/0-data/Region-1-WMO-Normals-9120/Libya/CSV/SIRTE_62019.csv

| title = Sirte Climate Normals 1991–2020

| work = World Meteorological Organization Climatological Standard Normals (1991–2020)

| publisher = National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

| access-date = 14 September 2023}}

}}

Notable people

File:Moamer el Gadafi (cropped).jpg

Muammar Gaddafi (1942–2011), former leader
Moussa Ibrahim (born 1974), politician and Gaddafi's information minister and spokesman
Sayyid Gaddaf al-Dam (1948–2023), military person and cousin of Gaddafi