Aqaba in the context of "King's Highway (ancient)"

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⭐ Core Definition: Aqaba

Aqaba (English: /ˈækəbə/ AK-ə-bə, US also /ˈɑːk-/ AHK-; Arabic: الْعَقَبَة, romanizedal-ʿAqaba, pronounced [ælˈʕæqɑba, ælˈʕæɡæba]) is the only coastal city in Jordan and the largest and most populous city on the Gulf of Aqaba. Situated in southernmost Jordan, Aqaba is the administrative center of the Aqaba Governorate. The city had a population of 148,398 in 2015 and a land area of 375 square kilometres (144.8 sq mi). Aqaba has significant trade and tourism. The Port of Aqaba also serves other countries in the region.

Aqaba's strategic location at the northeastern tip of the Red Sea between the continents of Asia and Africa has made its port important for thousands of years. The ancient city was called Elath, known in Latin as Aela) and in Arabic as Ayla. Its strategic location and proximity to copper mines made it a regional hub for copper production and trade in the Chalcolithic period.

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Aqaba in the context of Eilat

Eilat (/ˈlɑːt/ ay-LAHT, UK also /ˈlæt/ ay-LAT; Hebrew: אילת [eˈlat] ; Arabic: إِيلَات, romanizedĪlāt) is Israel's southernmost city, with a population of 57,339, a busy port and popular resort at the northern tip of the Red Sea, on what is known in Israel as the Gulf of Eilat and in Jordan as the Gulf of Aqaba. The city is considered a tourist destination for domestic and international tourists heading to Israel.

Eilat is located at the southernmost tip of Israel, at the southern end of the Arava valley and the Negev desert, adjacent to the Egyptian resort city of Taba to the south, the Jordanian port city of Aqaba to the east, and within sight of Haql, Saudi Arabia, across the gulf to the southeast.

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Aqaba in the context of Jordan Valley

The Jordan Valley (Arabic: غَوْر الأُرْدُنّ, romanizedGhawr al-Urdunn; Hebrew: עֵמֶק הַיַרְדֵּן, romanizedEmek HaYarden) forms part of the larger Jordan Rift Valley. Unlike most other river valleys, the term "Jordan Valley" often applies just to the lower course of the Jordan River, from the spot where it exits the Sea of Galilee in the north, to the end of its course where it flows into the Dead Sea in the south. In a wider sense, the term may also cover the Dead Sea basin and the Arabah valley, which is the rift valley segment beyond the Dead Sea and ending at Aqaba/Eilat, 155 km (96 mi) farther south.

The valley, in the common, narrow sense, is a long and narrow trough, 105 km (65 mi) long if measured "as the crow flies", with a width averaging 10 km (6.2 mi) with some points narrowing to 4 km (2.5 mi) over most of the course, before widening out to a 20 km (12 mi) delta when reaching the Dead Sea. Due to meandering, the length of the river itself is 220 km (140 mi). This is the valley with the lowest elevation in the world, beginning at −212 m (−696 ft) below sea level (BSL) and terminating at less than −400 m (−1,300 ft) BSL. On both sides, to the east and west, the valley is bordered by high, steep escarpments rising from the valley floor by between 1,200 m (3,900 ft) to 1,700 m (5,600 ft).

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Aqaba in the context of Arab nationalism

Arab nationalism (Arabic: القومية العربية, romanizedal-qawmīya al-ʿarabīya) is a political ideology asserting that Arabs constitute a single nation. As a traditional nationalist ideology, it promotes Arab culture and civilization, celebrates Arab history, the Arabic language and Arabic literature. It often also calls for unification of Arab society. It bases itself on the premise that the people of the Arab world—from the Atlantic Ocean to the Arabian Sea—constitute one nation bound together by a common identityethnicity, language, culture, history, geography, and politics.

Rooted in the 19th-century Nahda under Ottoman rule, Arab nationalism emerged in the early 20th century as an opposition movement in the Arab provinces of the Ottoman Empire, later evolving into the overwhelmingly dominant ideological force in the Arab world. Initially focused on resisting Ottoman control, it later opposed Western imperialism after World War I due to the undesirable outcome of the Arab Revolt — in successfully achieving their primary goal of dissolving the Ottoman Empire, the Arab rebels simultaneously enabled the partitioning of their would-be unified Arab state by Britain and France. Anti-Western sentiment grew as Arab nationalists rallied around the Palestinian cause, viewing Zionism as a threat to the region's integrity and linking the Arab–Israeli conflict to Western imperialism due to the Balfour Declaration. Arab unity was considered a necessary instrument to "restoring this lost part" of the nation, which in turn meant eliminating the "relics" of foreign colonialism. Its influence steadily expanded over subsequent years. By the 1950s and 1960s, the charismatic Egyptian leader Gamal Abdel Nasser championed Arab nationalism following his seizure and nationalization of the Suez Canal and his "victory" over British–French–Israeli forces in the 1956 Suez Crisis, and political parties like the Ba'ath Party and the Arab Nationalist Movement demonstrated remarkable capabilities for mobilization, organization, and clandestine activities. This ideology seemed to be on the rise across the Arab states, with independent Arab governments such as Syria, Iraq, Algeria, and Egypt adopting Arab nationalism as official state policy.

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Aqaba in the context of Arabah

The Arabah/Araba (Arabic: وادي عربة, romanizedWādī ʿAraba) or Aravah/Arava (Hebrew: הָעֲרָבָה, romanizedhāʿĂrāḇā, lit.'dry area') is a loosely defined geographic area located south of the Dead Sea drainage basin and north of the Gulf of Aqaba in southeastern Israel and southwestern Jordan.

The old meaning, which was in use up to around the early 20th century, covered almost the entire length of what today is called the Jordan Rift Valley, running in a north–south orientation between the southern end of the Sea of Galilee and the northern tip of the Gulf of Aqaba of the Red Sea at AqabaEilat. This included the Jordan Rift Valley between the Sea of Galilee and the Dead Sea, the Dead Sea itself, and what today is commonly called the Arava Valley. The contemporary use of the term is restricted to this southern section alone.

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Aqaba in the context of Israel–Jordan relations

Israel–Jordan relations are the diplomatic, economic and cultural relations between Israel and Jordan. The two countries share a land border, with three border crossings: Yitzhak Rabin/Wadi Araba Crossing, Jordan River Crossing and the Allenby/King Hussein Bridge Crossing, that connects the West Bank with Jordan. The relationship between the two countries is regulated by the Israel–Jordan peace treaty in 1994, which formally ended the state of war between the two countries since the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948 and provided the platform for diplomatic and trade relations. On 8 October 2020, Israel and Jordan signed an agreement allowing flights to cross over each other's airspace. Jordan helped intercept Iranian drones during the strikes in Israel in April 2024.

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Aqaba in the context of Campaigns of the Arab Revolt

The Arab Revolt started by Sherif Hussein ibn Ali had a series of campaigns, starting from Mecca in June 1916. Here is a list of these campaigns:

  • The Battle of Makkah started on the morning of June 10, 1916, and was the beginning of the Arab Revolt. It ended with the capture of the city by the forces of Sherif Hussein ibn Ali.
  • Jeddah was attacked on June 9 by 4000 Sharifian forces.
  • Siege of Medina was started in the middle of 1916 and continued till January 9, 1919. Fakhri Pasha's heroic and stubborn resistance was cause of this long siege.
  • Taif was surrendered to Hashemite forces on September 23, 1916.
  • Al Lith was occupied by Sharifian forces on June 23.
  • Yanbu was captured on July 27. Ummlajj was captured after Yanbu.
  • Qunfudah was captured on October 10.
  • Wejh, the port city was captured in the mid of January 1917 with little difficulty. Only 200 Ottoman soldiers were there.
  • Aqaba fell to Sharifian forces on July 6, 1917.
  • The Battle of Wadi Musa was fought on October 23, 1917, when Ottoman army was sent to deal with Sharifian army camped at Wadi Musa. Before the Ottoman unit reached Wadi Musa, they were intercepted by 700 Arab troops under the command of Maulood Mukhlis. Four hundred Ottomans were killed and 300 were captured.
  • The Battle of Al-Samna was a defeat to Sharifian army. Al-Samna is situated near Ma'an. The battle took place on April 25–26, 1918.
  • Damascus was captured by British and Sharifian forces on October 1, 1918.
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Aqaba in the context of Haql

Haql (Arabic: حقل, Ḥaql) is a city and governorate in the northwest of Saudi Arabia, within the Tabuk Province. It is located near the head of the Gulf of Aqaba and sits adjacent to Aqaba City across the Jordanian border.

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Aqaba in the context of Wadi Rum

Wadi Rum (Arabic: وادي رم Wādī Ramm, also Wādī al-Ramm, known also as the Valley of the Moon or Red mountains (Arabic: وادي القمر, romanizedWādī al-Qamar), is a valley cut into the sandstone and granite rock in southern Jordan, near the border with Saudi Arabia and about 60 km (37 mi) to the east of the city of Aqaba. With an area of 720 km (280 sq mi) it is the largest wadi (river valley) in Jordan.

Several prehistoric civilizations left petroglyphs, rock inscriptions and ruins in Wadi Rum. Today it is a tourist attraction, offering guided tours, hiking and rock climbing. The Wadi Rum Protected Area has been a UNESCO World Heritage site since 2011.

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