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100-407: It was one of six megaprojects that were announced in 2005 and is the only one that was launched. By 2018, The Financial Times wrote that the city had not attracted investment or become a hub for logistics and manufacturing, contrary to the grand plans behind the project. By 2018, the city had a population of 7,000. With a total development area of 173 km² (66.8 sq mi), the city is located along

200-437: A Dubai -based public joint stock company and one of the world’s largest real estate companies, and SAGIA (Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority) which is the main facilitator of the project. The city, along with another five economic cities, is a part of an ambitious "10x10" program to place Saudi Arabia among the world's top ten competitive investment destinations by the year 2010, planned by SAGIA . The first stage of

300-599: A Greek periplus written by an unknown author around the 1st century, contains a detailed description of the Red Sea's ports and sea routes. The Periplus also describes how Hippalus first discovered the direct route from the Red Sea to India . The Red Sea was favored for Roman trade with India starting with the reign of Augustus , when the Roman Empire gained control over the Mediterranean, Egypt , and

400-695: A crop of the Columbian Exchange . Cactus hedges – both intentionally planted and wild garden escapes – formed an important part of defensible positions during the Sinai and Palestine campaign of World War I. Some unfamiliar soldiers even tried eating them, to negative result. Dromedary herding is important here. Trypanosoma evansi is a constant concern and is transmitted by several vectors . Although ticks have not been proven to be among them, Mahmoud and Gray 1980 and El-Kady 1998 experimentally demonstrate survival of T. evansi in camel ticks of

500-719: A few days. In March 1957, Israel withdrew its forces from Sinai, following strong pressure from the United States and the Soviet Union . Thereafter, the United Nations Emergency Force (UNEF) was stationed in Sinai to prevent any further conflict in the Sinai. On 16 May 1967, Egypt ordered the UNEF out of Sinai and reoccupied it militarily. Secretary-General U Thant eventually complied and ordered

600-747: A geography where large deep-water sharks can roam in hundreds of meters of water, yet be within a hundred meters of swimming areas. The Red Sea Project is building highest quality accommodation and a wide range of facilities on the coast line in Saudi Arabia. This will allow people to visit the coastline of the Red Sea by the end of 2022 but will be fully finished by 2030. Tourism to the region has been threatened by occasional terrorist attacks, and by incidents related to food safety standards. Sinai Peninsula The Sinai Peninsula , or simply Sinai ( / ˈ s aɪ n aɪ / SY -ny ; Arabic : سِينَاء ; Egyptian Arabic : سينا ; Coptic : Ⲥⲓⲛⲁ ),

700-557: A large ransom. Under President el-Sisi , Egypt has implemented a rigorous policy of controlling the border to the Gaza Strip , including the dismantling of tunnels between Gaza and Sinai. The two governorates of North Sinai and South Sinai have a total population of 597,000 (January 2013). This figure rises to 1,400,000 by including Western Sinai, the parts of the Port Said , Ismailia and Suez Governorates lying east of

800-682: A popular destination for diving after the expeditions of Hans Hass in the 1950s, and later by Jacques-Yves Cousteau . Popular tourist resorts include El Gouna , Hurghada , Safaga , Marsa Alam , on the west shore of the Red Sea, and Sharm-el-Sheikh , Dahab , and Taba on the Egyptian side of Sinaï , as well as Aqaba in Jordan and Eilat in Israel in an area known as the Red Sea Riviera . The popular tourist beach of Sharm el-Sheikh

900-532: A population (January 2013) of 597,000. Three more governates span the Suez Canal, crossing into African Egypt: Suez (el-Sewais) is on the southern end of the Suez Canal, Ismailia (el-Isma'ileyyah) in the centre, and Port Said in the north. The largest city of Sinai is Arish , capital of the North Sinai, with around 160,000 residents. Other larger settlements include Sharm El Sheikh and El-Tor , on

1000-456: A seasonal basis for thousands of years. Modern attempts to exploit the deposits have been unprofitable. These may be the first historically attested mines. The fortress Tjaru in western Sinai was a place of banishment for Egyptian criminals. The Way of Horus connected it across northern Sinai with ancient Canaan . At the end of the time of Darius I , the Great (521–486 BCE) Sinai was part of

1100-466: A word only known from two occurrences in the Hebrew Bible , in both cases referring to the burning bush . Rabbi Eliezer opines that Mount Horeb only received the name Sinai after God appeared to Moses in the shape of a burning bush. Its modern Arabic name is سِينَاء Sīnāʼ  ( Egyptian Arabic سينا Sīna ; IPA: [ˈsiːnæ] ). The modern Arabic is an adoption of

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1200-631: Is a peninsula in Egypt , and the only part of the country located in Asia . It is between the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Red Sea to the south, and is a land bridge between Asia and Africa . Sinai has a land area of about 60,000 km (23,000 sq mi) (6 percent of Egypt's total area) and a population of approximately 600,000 people. Administratively, the vast majority of

1300-849: Is a direct translation of the Ancient Greek Erythra Thalassa ( Ἐρυθρὰ Θάλασσα ). The sea itself was once referred to as the Erythraean Sea by Europeans. As well as Mare Rubrum in Latin (alternatively Sinus Arabicus , literally "Arabian Gulf"), the Romans called it Pontus Herculis (Sea of Hercules). Other designations include the Arabic : البحر الأحمر , romanized :  Al-Baḥr Al-Aḥmar (alternatively بحر القلزم Baḥr Al-Qulzum , literally "the Sea of Clysma "),

1400-877: Is a sea inlet of the Indian Ocean , lying between Africa and Asia. Its connection to the ocean is in the south, through the Bab-el-Mandeb strait and the Gulf of Aden . To its north lie the Sinai Peninsula , the Gulf of Aqaba , and the Gulf of Suez —leading to the Suez Canal . It is underlain by the Red Sea Rift , which is part of the Great Rift Valley . The Red Sea has a surface area of roughly 438,000 km (169,000 sq mi),

1500-617: Is about 2,250 km (1,400 mi) long, and 355 km (221 mi) wide at its widest point. It has an average depth of 490 m (1,610 ft), and in the central Suakin Trough it reaches its maximum depth of 3,040 m (9,970 ft). Approximately 40% of the Red Sea is quite shallow at less than 100 m (330 ft) deep, and about 25% is less than 50 m (160 ft) deep. The extensive shallow shelves are noted for their marine life and corals . More than 1,000 invertebrate species and 200 types of soft and hard coral live in

1600-561: Is also the capital of the South Sinai Governorate of Egypt . As another Arabic word for "mass of very high land going up to a peak – mountain" is "Ṭūr". The English name came from Latin, ultimately from Hebrew סִינַי‎, pronounced /siˈnái/ ( see- NIGH , in English phonetic spelling). In English , the name is now usually pronounced / ˈ s aɪ n aɪ / . An alternative, now dated pronunciation in English

1700-480: Is considered that it will become an ocean in time (as proposed in the model of John Tuzo Wilson ). In 1949, a deep water survey reported anomalously hot brines in the central portion of the Red Sea. Later work in the 1960s confirmed the presence of hot, 60 °C (140 °F), saline brines and associated metalliferous muds. The hot solutions were emanating from an active subseafloor rift . Lake Asal in Djibouti

1800-447: Is eligible as an experimental site to study the evolution of the deep hot brines of the Red Sea. By observing the strontium isotope composition of the Red Sea brines, it is possible to deduce how these salt waters found at the bottom of the Red Sea could have evolved in a similar way to Lake Asal, which ideally represents their compositional extreme. The high salinity of the waters was not hospitable to living organisms. Sometime during

1900-858: Is served by the Al-Haramain High Speed line . The construction of the station has been completed by 2018. On 25 September 2018, King Salman Bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud inaugurated the project. The city is the destination of Alan Clay, the protagonist in Dave Eggers 's 2012 novel A Hologram for the King . Alberini C. (2011), "Urbanistica e Real Estate. Il ruolo della finanza nei processi di trasformazione urbana", Milano, Franco Angeli Ed., Cap.5 - Nuove realizzazioni e fondi di investimento: KAEC new towns nel deserto fondate sul petrolio (pag. 125-132). Red Sea The Red Sea

2000-554: Is that some Asiatic languages used color words to refer to the cardinal directions . Herodotus on one occasion uses Red Sea and Southern Sea interchangeably. The name in Hebrew Yam Suph ( Hebrew : ים סוף , lit.   'Sea of Reeds') is of biblical origin. The name in Coptic : ⲫⲓⲟⲙ `ⲛϩⲁϩ Phiom Enhah ("Sea of Hah") is connected to Ancient Egyptian root ḥ-ḥ which refers to water and sea (for example

2100-416: Is the driving force in the Red Sea to transport material as suspension or as bedload. Wind-induced currents play an important role in the Red Sea in resuspending bottom sediments and transferring materials from sites of dumping to sites of burial in quiescent environment of deposition. Wind-generated current measurement is therefore important in order to determine the sediment dispersal pattern and its role in

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2200-451: The 2011 Egyptian revolution , unrest has become more prevalent in the area including the August 2012 Sinai attack in which 16 Egyptian soldiers were killed by militants. (See Sinai insurgency .) Also on the rise are kidnappings of refugees . According to Meron Estifanos, Eritrean refugees are often kidnapped by Bedouin in the northern Sinai, tortured, raped, and only released after paying

2300-473: The 2023-2024 Israel-Hamas war . One ship was hijacked and taken back to Yemen. The Red Sea is between arid land, desert and semi-desert . Reef systems are better developed along the Red Sea mainly because of its greater depths and an efficient water circulation pattern. The Red Sea water mass-exchanges its water with the Arabian Sea , Indian Ocean via the Gulf of Aden . These physical factors reduce

2400-499: The Coptic ⲫⲓⲟⲙ ̀ⲛϣⲁⲣⲓ Phiom ̀nšari , Syriac ܝܡܐ ܣܘܡܩܐ Yammāʾ summāqā, Somali Badda cas and Tigrinya Qeyyiḥ bāḥrī (ቀይሕ ባሕሪ). The name of the sea may signify the seasonal blooms of the red-coloured Trichodesmium erythraeum near the water's surface. A theory favored by some modern scholars is that the name red is referring to the direction south, just as the Black Sea 's name may refer to north. The basis of this theory

2500-423: The Egyptian 3rd Army , and occupied a section of the Suez Canal's west bank. The war ended following a mutually agreed-upon ceasefire. After the war, as part of the subsequent Sinai Disengagement Agreements , Israel withdrew from immediate proximity with the Suez Canal, with Egypt agreeing to permit passage of Israeli ships. The canal was reopened in 1975, with President Anwar Sadat leading the first convoy through

2600-593: The Gulf of Aqaba . This line has served as the de jure eastern border of Egypt ever since. In 1956, Egypt nationalised the Suez Canal , a waterway marking the boundary between Egyptian territory in Africa and the Sinai Peninsula. Thereafter, Israeli ships were prohibited from using the Canal, owing to the state of war between the two states. Egypt also prohibited ships from using Egyptian territorial waters on

2700-496: The Levant (the present-day territories of Syria , Lebanon , Jordan , Israel and Palestine ), which, due largely to its strategic geopolitical location and cultural convergences, has historically been the center of conflict between Egypt and various states of Mesopotamia and Asia Minor . In periods of foreign occupation, the Sinai was, like the rest of Egypt, also occupied and controlled by foreign empires, in more recent history

2800-934: The Mamluk Sultanate of Egypt from 1260 until 1517, when the Ottoman Sultan, Selim the Grim , defeated the Egyptians at the Battles of Marj Dabiq and al-Raydaniyya , and incorporated Egypt into the Ottoman Empire . From then until 1906, Sinai was administered by the Ottoman provincial government of the Pashalik of Egypt , even following the establishment of the Muhammad Ali dynasty 's rule over

2900-707: The Mediterranean Sea . To the point that a number of them now form a significant component of the Mediterranean ecosystem. The resulting change in biodiversity, without precedent in human memory, is currently accelerating, in particular for fishes according to surveys engaged by the Mediterranean Science Commission . The rich diversity of the Red Sea is in part due to the 2,000 km (1,240 mi) of coral reef extending along its coastline; these fringing reefs are 5000–7000 years old and are largely formed of stony acropora and porites corals. The reefs form platforms and sometimes lagoons along

3000-899: The Ottoman Empire ( 1517–1867 ) and the United Kingdom ( 1882–1956 ). Israel invaded and occupied Sinai during the Suez Crisis (known in Egypt as the Tripartite Aggression due to the simultaneous coordinated attack by the UK, France and Israel) of 1956, and during the Six-Day War of 1967. On 6 October 1973, Egypt launched the Yom Kippur War , seizing most of the east bank of the Suez Canal and negotiating

3100-517: The Persian province of Abar-Nahra , which means 'beyond the river [Euphrates]'. Cambyses successfully managed the crossing of the hostile Sinai Desert, traditionally Egypt's first and strongest line of defence, and brought the Egyptians under Psamtik III , son and successor of Ahmose , to battle at Pelusium . The Egyptians lost and retired to Memphis ; the city fell to the Persian control and

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3200-601: The Red Sea slave trade from Africa to the Middle East. During the Middle Ages , the Red Sea was an important part of the spice trade route. In 1183, Raynald of Châtillon launched a raid down the Red Sea to attack the Muslim pilgrim convoys to Mecca. The possibility that Raynald's fleet might sack the holy cities of Mecca and Medina caused fury throughout the Muslim world. However, it appears that Reynald's target

3300-591: The Roman Empire went on to control all shores of the Mediterranean Sea . The Sinai Peninsula became part of the Roman province of Arabia Petraea . Saint Catherine's Monastery on the foot of Mount Sinai was constructed by order of the Emperor Justinian between 527 and 565. Most of the Sinai Peninsula became part of the province of Palaestina Salutaris in the 6th century. During the Crusades it

3400-692: The Second World War , the Americans and Soviets exerted their influence whilst the volume of oil tanker traffic intensified. However, the Six-Day War culminated in the closure of the Suez Canal from 1967 to 1975. Today, in spite of patrols by the major maritime fleets in the waters of the Red Sea, the Suez Canal has never recovered its supremacy over the Cape route, which is believed to be less vulnerable to piracy. Iranian -backed Yemini Houthis have attacked Western ships, including warships , during

3500-617: The Septuagint translation of the Book of Exodus from Hebrew to Koine Greek in approximately the third century BC. In that version, the Yam Suph ( Hebrew : ים סוף , lit.   'Sea of Reeds') is translated as Erythra Thalassa (Red Sea). The Red Sea is one of four seas named in English after common color terms – the others being the Black Sea , the White Sea and

3600-788: The Tertiary period, the Bab el Mandeb closed and the Red Sea evaporated to an empty hot dry salt-floored sink. Effects causing this would have been: A number of volcanic islands rise from the center of the sea. Most are dormant. However, in 2007, Jabal al-Tair island in the Bab el Mandeb strait erupted violently. Two new islands were formed in 2011 and 2013 in the Zubair Archipelago , a small chain of islands owned by Yemen. The first island, Sholan Island, emerged in an eruption in December 2011,

3700-632: The Yellow Sea . The direct rendition of the Greek Erythra thalassa in Latin as Mare Erythraeum refers to the north-western part of the Indian Ocean , and also to a region on Mars . The earliest known exploration of the Red Sea was conducted by ancient Egyptians , as they attempted to establish commercial routes to Punt . One such expedition took place around 2500 BC, and another around 1500 BC (by Hatshepsut ). Both involved long voyages down

3800-598: The Yom Kippur War (known in Egypt as the October War ). Egyptian engineering forces built pontoon bridges to cross the Suez Canal, and stormed the Bar Lev Line , Israel's defensive line along the Suez Canal's east bank. Though the Egyptians maintained control of most of the east bank of the Suez Canal, in the later stages of the war, the Israeli military crossed the southern section of the Suez Canal, cutting off

3900-448: The ancient Mesopotamian moon-god Sin . The moon-deity Sin is associated with the area; the ancient Egyptian moon-god Thoth is also associated with Sin, and his worship was widespread throughout the south tip of the Sinai Peninsula. The Jewish Encyclopedia (1901-1906) quotes a Rabbinic source , the 8th- or 9th-century Pirke De-Rabbi Eliezer , which derives the name from the biblical Hebrew word seneh ( Hebrew : סֶ֫נֶּה ),

4000-917: The global economy , with cargo vessels traveling between the Indian Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea every year, thus shortening the path between Asia and Europe almost by half (as compared to traveling around Africa via the Atlantic Ocean). 12% of global trade passes through the Red Sea. This includes 30% of global container traffic. The sea is known for its recreational diving sites, such as Ras Mohammed , SS Thistlegorm (shipwreck), Elphinstone Reef , The Brothers , Daedalus Reef , St. John's Reef , Rocky Island in Egypt and less known sites in Sudan such as Sanganeb , Abington , Angarosh and Shaab Rumi . The Red Sea became

4100-416: The sabkhas through a network of channels. However, south of Jeddah in the Shoiaba area, the water from the lagoon may cover the adjoining sabkhas as far as 3 km (2 mi), whereas north of Jeddah in the Al-Kharrar area the sabkhas are covered by a thin sheet of water as far as 2 km (1.2 mi). The prevailing north and northeast winds influence the movement of water in the coastal inlets to

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4200-438: The 44 recorded species of shark, and by many species (over 175) of nudibranch , many of which are endemic to the Red Sea. Other coastal Red Sea habitats include sea grass beds, salt pans , mangrove and salt marsh . Furthermore the deep Red Sea brine pools have been extensively studied with regard to their microbial life, characterized by its diversity and adaptation to extreme environments. The high marine biodiversity of

4300-432: The 6th century BC, Darius the Great , who was a prominent ruler of the Achaemenid Empire in Persia, undertook significant efforts to improve and extend navigation in the Red Sea. He sent reconnaissance missions to explore the Red Sea area and to identify its various navigational hazards, such as rocks and currents. This effort was significant, as it contributed to safer and more efficient navigation routes. In addition to

4400-404: The Achaemenid Empire's economic and political power in the region. In the late 4th century BC, Alexander the Great sent Greek naval expeditions down the Red Sea to the Indian Ocean . Greek navigators continued to explore and compile data on the Red Sea. Agatharchides collected information about the sea in the 2nd century BC. The Periplus of the Erythraean Sea (" Periplus of the Red Sea "),

4500-432: The Asian mainland, is around 200 kilometres (120 mi) wide. The peninsula's eastern shore separates the Arabian Plate from the African Plate . The southernmost tip is the Ras Muhammad National Park . Most of the Sinai Peninsula is divided among the two governorates of Egypt : South Sinai (Ganub Sina) and North Sinai (Shamal Sina). Together, they comprise around 60,000 square kilometres (23,000 sq mi) and have

4600-404: The Biblical name; the 19th-century Arabic designation of Sinai was Jebel el-Tūr , and the name of the mountain is derived from the town of El Tor (formerly called "Tur Sinai"), whose name comes from the Arabic term for the mountain where the prophet Moses received the Tablets of the Law from God, thus this mountain is designated as " Jabal Aṭ-Ṭūr ( Arabic : جبل الطّور )", and the town

4700-452: The Israelis had founded as Ofira during their occupation of the Sinai Peninsula) was not dismantled. The Treaty allows monitoring of Sinai by the Multinational Force and Observers , and limits the number of Egyptian military forces in the peninsula. Article 2 of Annex I of the Peace Treaty called for the Sinai Peninsula to be divided into zones. Within these zones, Egypt and Israel were permitted varying degrees of military buildup: Since

4800-438: The Pharaoh was carried off in captivity to Susa in Persia. Rhinocorura ( Greek for " Cut-off Noses ") and the eponymous region around it were used by Ptolemaid Egypt as a place of banishment for criminals, today known as Arish . After the death of the last Nabatean king, Rabbel II Soter , in 106, the Roman emperor Trajan faced practically no resistance and conquered the kingdom on 22 March 106. With this conquest,

4900-423: The Red Sea and its coasts is extremely low, averaging 60 mm (2.36 in) per year. The rain is mostly short showers, often with thunderstorms and occasionally with dust storms . The scarcity of rainfall and no major source of fresh water to the Red Sea result in excess evaporation as high as 2,050 mm (81 in) per year and high salinity with minimal seasonal variation. A recent underwater expedition to

5000-437: The Red Sea inside the Bab al-Mandab , as the first fleet from Europe in modern times to have sailed these waters. Later in 1524 the city was delivered to Governor Heitor da Silveira as an agreement for protection from the Ottomans . In 1798, France ordered General Napoleon to invade Egypt and take control of the Red Sea. Although he failed in his mission, the engineer Jean-Baptiste Lepère , who took part in it, revitalised

5100-408: The Red Sea is dominated by persistent north-west winds , with speeds ranging between 7 km/h (4.3 mph) and 12 km/h (7.5 mph). The rest of the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden are subjected to regular and seasonally reversible winds. The wind regime is characterized by seasonal and regional variations in speed and direction with average speed generally increasing northward. Wind

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5200-465: The Red Sea offshore from Sudan and Eritrea found surface water temperatures 28 °C (82 °F) in winter and up to 34 °C (93 °F) in the summer, but despite that extreme heat, the coral was healthy with much fish life with very little sign of coral bleaching , with only 9% infected by Thalassomonas loyana , the 'white plague' agent. Favia favus coral there harbours a virus, BA3, which kills T. loyana . Scientists are investigating

5300-413: The Red Sea. The biblical Book of Exodus tells the account of the Israelites ' crossing of the sea , which the Hebrew text calls Yam Suph ( Hebrew : יַם סוּף ). Yam Suph was traditionally identified as the Red Sea. Rabbi Saadia Gaon (882‒942), in his Judeo-Arabic translation of the Pentateuch , identifies the crossing place of the Red Sea as Baḥar al-Qulzum , meaning the Gulf of Suez . In

5400-412: The Red Sea. The net value of the latter predominates, resulting in an overall drift to the north end of the Red Sea. Generally, the velocity of the tidal current is 50–60 cm/s (20–24 in/s) with a maximum of 1 m/s (3.3 ft/s) at the mouth of the al-Kharrar Lagoon. However, the range of the north-northeast current along the Saudi coast is 8–29 cm/s (3–11 in/s). The north part of

5500-433: The Suez Canal. Port Said alone has a population of roughly 500,000 people (January 2013). Portions of the populations of Ismailia and Suez live in west Sinai, while the rest live on the western side of the Suez Canal. The population of Sinai has largely consisted of desert-dwelling Bedouins with their colourful traditional costumes and significant culture. Large numbers of Egyptians from the Nile Valley and Delta moved to

5600-683: The Upper Adriatic region of Trieste with its connections to Central and Eastern Europe . On June 12, 2008, King Abdullah visited the city and evaluated the progress. Some of the proposed projects in the city included: The king also inaugurated the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST). The university is 20 km away south of the city in the village of Thuwal . It opened in September 2009. Emaar , E.C. and SAGIA have signed several memorandums of understanding and contracts with international and local developers in many fields. Emaar, E.C has also launched two residential areas, Bay La Sun Village, and Esmeralda Suburb. KAEC

5700-418: The adjacent sabkhas, especially during storms. Winter mean sea level is 0.5 m (1.6 ft) higher than in summer. Tidal velocities passing through constrictions caused by reefs, sand bars and low islands commonly exceed 1–2 m/s (3–7 ft/s). Coral reefs in the Red Sea are near Egypt, Eritrea, Israel, Saudi Arabia, and Sudan. Detailed information regarding current data is lacking, partially because

5800-407: The area is recognized by the Egyptian government, which set up the Ras Mohammed National Park in 1983. The rules and regulations governing this area protect local marine life, which has become a major draw for diving enthusiasts who should be aware that although most Red Sea species are innocuous, a few are hazardous to humans. There is extensive demand for desalinated water to meet the needs of

5900-436: The area of the Sinai Peninsula is divided into two governorates : the South Sinai Governorate and the North Sinai Governorate . Three other governorates span the Suez Canal , crossing into African Egypt: Suez Governorate on the southern end of the Suez Canal, Ismailia Governorate in the center, and Port Said Governorate in the north. In the classical era, the region was known as Arabia Petraea . The peninsula acquired

6000-506: The area to work in tourism, but development adversely affected the native Bedouin population. In order to help alleviate their problems, various NGOs began to operate in the region, including the Makhad Trust , a UK charity that assists the Bedouin in developing a sustainable income while protecting Sinai's natural environment, heritage and culture. Since the Israeli–Egyptian peace treaty, Sinai's scenic spots (including coral reefs offshore) and religious structures have become important to

6100-441: The canal aboard an Egyptian Navy destroyer. In 1979, Egypt and Israel signed a peace treaty in which Israel agreed to withdraw from the entirety of the Sinai Peninsula. Israel subsequently withdrew in several stages, ending in 1982. The Israeli pull-out involved dismantling almost all Israeli settlements, including the settlement of Yamit in north-eastern Sinai. The exception was that the coastal city of Sharm el-Sheikh (which

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6200-411: The city served as a warning for grand megaprojects in the region, as the project fell well short of the initial grand proposals behind the project. It is being built along with 4 other new cities in Saudi Arabia to control sprawl and congestion in existing cities. The port of the city is part of the Maritime Silk Road that runs from the Chinese coast via the Suez Canal to the Mediterranean, there to

6300-412: The city was completed in 2010 and the whole city was planned to be fully completed by 2020. The city aims to diversify the nation's oil-based economy by bringing direct foreign and domestic investments. The city also aspires to help create up to one million jobs. Upon completion, KAEC is intended to have a population of 2 million. By 2018, it only had a population of 7,000. The Financial Times wrote that

6400-480: The coast and occasional other features such as cylinders (such as the Blue Hole (Red Sea) at Dahab ). The Red Sea also hosts many offshore reefs, including several true atolls. Many of the unusual offshore reef formations defy classic (i.e., Darwinian) coral reef classification schemes, and are generally attributed to the high levels of tectonic activity that characterize the area. Both offshore and coastal reefs are visited by pelagic species of fish, including many of

6500-1214: The coast of Africa ] and Aqaba [A line running from Ràs al Fasma Southwesterly to Requin Island ( 27°57′N 34°36′E  /  27.950°N 34.600°E  / 27.950; 34.600 ) through Tiran Island to the Southwest point thereof and thence Westward on a parallel (27°54'N) to the coast of the Sinai Peninsula ]. On the South. A line joining Husn Murad ( 12°40′N 43°30′E  /  12.667°N 43.500°E  / 12.667; 43.500 ) and Ras Siyyan ( 12°29′N 43°20′E  /  12.483°N 43.333°E  / 12.483; 43.333 ). Exclusive economic zones in Red Sea: Note: Hala'ib Triangle disputed between Sudan and Egypt and calculated for both. Red Sea has names in many languages (Modern Arabic : البحر الأحمر , romanized :  al-Baḥr al-ʾAḥmar , Medieval Arabic: بحر القلزم , romanized:  Baḥr al-Qulzum ; Biblical Hebrew : יַם-סוּף , romanized:  Yam Sūp̄ or Hebrew : הַיָּם הָאָדוֹם , romanized :  hayYām hāʾĀḏōm ; Coptic : ⲫⲓⲟⲙ ⲛ̀ϩⲁϩ Phiom Enhah or ⲫⲓⲟⲙ ⲛ̀ϣⲁⲣⲓ Phiom ǹšari ; Tigrinya : ቀይሕ ባሕሪ Qeyih Bahri ; Somali : Badda Cas ; Afar : "Qasa Bad". Red Sea

6600-484: The coast of the Red Sea , around 40 km south of Rabigh city and 100 km north of Jeddah , the commercial hub of Saudi Arabia. The city is also approximately an hour and 20 minutes away from the city of Mecca , 3 hours from Medina by car and an hour away from all Middle Eastern capital cities by plane. The total cost of the city is around SR 207 billion, with the project being built by Emaar Properties . A Tadawul -listed company created from Emaar Properties,

6700-417: The currents are weak and both spatially and temporally variable. The variation of temporal and spatial currents is as low as 0.5 m (1.6 ft) and are governed all by wind. During the summer, northwesterly winds drive surface water south for about four months at a velocity of 15–20 cm/s (6–8 in/s), whereas in winter the flow is reversed resulting in the inflow of water from the Gulf of Aden into

6800-492: The early 2000s, Sinai has been the site of several terror attacks against tourists , the majority of whom are Egyptian. Investigations have shown that these were mainly motivated by a resentment of the poverty faced by many Bedouin in the area. Attacking the tourist industry was viewed as a method of damaging the industry so that the government would pay more attention to their situation. (See 2004 Sinai bombings , 2005 Sharm El Sheikh bombings and 2006 Dahab bombings ). Since

6900-419: The eastern side of the peninsula to travel to and from Israel, effectively imposing a blockade on the Israeli port of Eilat . In October 1956, in what is known in Egypt as the Tripartite Aggression , Israel Defense Forces troops, aided by the United Kingdom and France (which sought to reverse the nationalization and regain control over the Suez Canal), invaded Sinai and occupied much of the peninsula within

7000-423: The effect of high salinity caused by evaporation in the north and relatively hot water in the south. The climate of the Red Sea is the result of two monsoon seasons: a northeasterly monsoon and a southwesterly monsoon. Monsoon winds occur because of differential heating between the land and the sea. Very high surface temperatures and high salinities make this one of the warmest and saltiest bodies of seawater in

7100-427: The erosion and accretion of the coastal rock exposure and the submerged coral beds. The Red Sea was formed by the Arabian Peninsula being split from the Horn of Africa by movement of the Red Sea Rift . This split started in the Eocene and accelerated during the Oligocene . The sea is still widening (in 2005, following a three-week period of tectonic activity it had grown by 8 m [26 ft]), and it

7200-536: The major constituents of the Red Sea sediments are as follows: The Red Sea is a rich and diverse ecosystem. For example more than 1200 fish species have been recorded in the Red Sea, of which 10% are endemic, found nowhere else. Since the opening of the Suez Canal in November 1869, over a thousand marine species from the Red Sea—from plankton, seaweeds, invertebrates to fishes—have migrated northward and settled in

7300-535: The maritime explorations, during the reign of Darius the Great, a canal was constructed linking the Nile River to the northern end of the Red Sea at Suez. This canal is sometimes referred to as the ancient Suez Canal. It played a pivotal role in improving trade and communication between the Nile Valley and the Red Sea, and beyond to the Indian Ocean. This canal was a predecessor to the modern Suez Canal , which

7400-588: The name Sinai in modern times due to the assumption that a mountain near Saint Catherine's Monastery is the Biblical Mount Sinai . Mount Sinai is one of the most religiously significant places in the Abrahamic faiths . The Sinai Peninsula has been a part of Egypt from the First Dynasty of ancient Egypt ( c.  3100 BC). This comes in stark contrast to the region north of it,

7500-572: The names of the Ogdoad gods Heh and Hauhet ). Historically, it was also known to western geographers as Mare Mecca (Sea of Mecca), and Sinus Arabicus (Gulf of Arabia). Some ancient geographers called the Red Sea the Arabian Gulf or Gulf of Arabia. The association of the Red Sea with the biblical account of the Israelites crossing the Red Sea is ancient, and was made explicit in

7600-519: The northern Red Sea. The route had been used by previous states but grew in the volume of traffic under the Romans. From Indian ports goods from China were introduced to the Roman world. Contact between Rome and China depended on the Red Sea, but the route was broken by the Aksumite Empire around the 3rd century AD. From antiquity until the 20th-century , the Red Sea was also a trade route of

7700-519: The plan for a canal which had been envisaged during the reign of the Pharaohs . Several canals were built in ancient times from the Nile to the Red Sea along or near the line of the present Sweet Water Canal , but none lasted for long. The Suez Canal was opened in November 1869. During the first half of the 20th-century, the Red Sea slave trade attracted substantional international condemnation. After

7800-428: The population and the industries along the Red Sea. There are at least 18 desalination plants along the Red Sea coast of Saudi Arabia which discharge warm brine and treatment chemicals ( chlorine and anti-scalants ) that bleach and kill corals and cause diseases in the fish. This is only localized, but it may intensify with time and profoundly impact the fishing industry. The Red Sea serves an important role in

7900-715: The rest of Egypt in 1805. In 1906, the Ottoman Porte formally transferred administration of Sinai to the Khedivate of Egypt , which essentially meant that it fell under the control of the British Empire , who had occupied and largely controlled Egypt since the 1882 Anglo-Egyptian War . The border imposed by the British runs in an almost straight line from Rafah on the Mediterranean shore to Taba on

8000-453: The rest of Sinai. In 1982, as a result of the Egypt–Israel peace treaty of 1979, Israel withdrew from all of the Sinai Peninsula except the contentious territory of Taba , which was returned after a ruling by a commission of arbitration in 1989. Today, Sinai has become a tourist destination due to its natural setting, rich coral reefs , and biblical history. Because the Sinai Peninsula

8100-568: The sea. The Red Sea is the world's northernmost tropical sea, and has been designated a Global 200 ecoregion. The International Hydrographic Organization defines the limits of the Red Sea as follows: On the North. The Southern limits of the Gulfs of Suez [A line running from Ràs Muhammed (27°43'N) to the South point of Shadwan Island (34°02'E) and thence Westward on a parallel (27°27'N) to

8200-526: The second island, Jadid, emerged in September 2013. Approximately 40% of the Red Sea is quite shallow at less than 100 m (330 ft) deep, with about 25% less than 50 m (160 ft) deep. Undiscovered oil reserves in the region have been estimated at 5,041 MMBO. Undiscovered gas reserves in the region have been estimated at 112,349 BCFG. Undiscovered natural gas reserves have been estimated at 3,077 MMBNGL. Most of these plays are controlled by

8300-488: The south near the Gulf of Aden, but it fluctuates between 0.20 m (0.66 ft) and 0.30 m (0.98 ft) away from the nodal point. The central Red Sea (Jeddah area) is therefore almost tideless, and as such the annual water level changes are more significant. Because of the small tidal range the water during high tide inundates the coastal sabkhas as a thin sheet of water up to a few hundred metres rather than flooding

8400-405: The southern coast. Inland Sinai is arid (effectively a desert), mountainous and sparsely populated, the largest settlements being Saint Catherine and Nekhel . Sinai is one of the coldest provinces in Egypt because of its high altitudes and mountainous topographies. Winter temperatures in some of Sinai's cities and towns reach −16 °C (3 °F). A cave with paintings of people and animals

8500-479: The southern part and 41 ‰ in the northern part around the Gulf of Suez , with an average of 40 ‰. (Average salinity for the world's seawater is ~35 ‰ on the Practical Salinity Scale, or PSU; that translates to 3.5% of actual dissolved salts). In general, tide ranges between 0.6 m (2.0 ft) in the north, near the mouth of the Gulf of Suez and 0.9 m (3.0 ft) in

8600-697: The structure of the basin. Normal faults are common as the Red Sea occupies an active diverging margin. These targets are commonly found below the Salt deposits of the Middle Miocene . Modern development is focused on the following fields. The Durwara 2 Field was discovered in 1963, while the Suakin 1 Field and the Bashayer 1A Field were discovered in 1976, on the Egyptian side of the Red Sea. The Barqan Field

8700-656: The tourism industry. The most popular tourist destination in Sinai are Mount Sinai ( Jabal Musa ) and St Catherine's Monastery , which is considered to be the oldest working Christian monastery in the world, and the beach resorts of Sharm el-Sheikh , Dahab , Nuweiba and Taba . Most tourists arrive at Sharm El Sheikh International Airport , through Eilat, Israel and the Taba Border Crossing , by road from Cairo or by ferry from Aqaba in Jordan. Cacti – especially cactus pears – are grown in Sinai. They are

8800-442: The unique properties of these coral and their commensal algae to see if they can be used to salvage bleached coral elsewhere. The Red Sea is one of the saltiest bodies of water in the world, owing to high evaporation and low precipitation; no significant rivers or streams drain into the sea, and its southern connection to the Gulf of Aden , an arm of the Indian Ocean, is narrow. Its salinity ranges from between ~36  ‰ in

8900-479: The west bank of the canal, led to high civilian casualties (including the virtual destruction of Suez), and contributed to the flight of 700,000 Egyptian internal refugees. Ultimately, the war concluded in 1970 with no change in the front line. On 6 October 1973, Egypt commenced Operation Badr to retake the Sinai, while Syria launched a simultaneous operation to retake the Golan Heights, thereby beginning

9000-525: The withdrawal without Security Council authorisation. In the course of the Six-Day War that broke out shortly thereafter, Israel occupied the entire Sinai Peninsula , and Gaza Strip from Egypt, the West Bank (including East Jerusalem ) from Jordan (which Jordan had controlled since 1949 ), and the Golan Heights from Syria . The Suez Canal, the east bank of which was now occupied by Israel,

9100-481: The world. The average surface water temperature of the Red Sea during the summer is about 26 °C (79 °F) in the north and 30 °C (86 °F) in the south, with only about 2 °C (3.6 °F) variation during the winter months. The overall average water temperature is 22 °C (72 °F). Temperature and visibility remain good to around 200 m (660 ft). The sea is known for its strong winds and unpredictable local currents. The rainfall over

9200-540: Was / ˈ s aɪ n ɪ aɪ / SY -nih-eye . Sinai is triangular in shape, with its northern shore lying on the southern Mediterranean Sea , and its southwest and southeast shores on the Gulf of Suez and the Gulf of Aqaba of the Red Sea . It is linked to the African continent by the Isthmus of Suez , 125 kilometres (78 mi) wide strip of land, containing the Suez Canal . The eastern isthmus, linking it to

9300-514: Was closed to all swimming in December 2010 due to several serious shark attacks , including a fatality. As of December 2010, scientists are investigating the attacks and have identified, but not verified, several possible causes including over-fishing which causes large sharks to hunt closer to shore, tourist boat operators who chum offshore for shark-photo opportunities, and reports of ships throwing dead livestock overboard. The sea's narrowness, significant depth, and sharp drop-offs, all combine to form

9400-580: Was closed. Israel commenced efforts at large scale Israeli settlement in the Sinai Peninsula. Following the Israeli conquest of Sinai, Egypt launched the War of Attrition (1967–70) aimed at forcing Israel to withdraw from the Sinai. The war saw protracted conflict in the Suez Canal Zone, ranging from limited to large-scale combat. Israeli shelling of the cities of Port Said , Ismailia , and Suez on

9500-481: Was constructed in the 19th century and continues to be one of the world's most important waterways. The construction of the canal during Darius's reign is evidenced by ancient records, including inscriptions. Darius commemorated the completion of the canal by creating stelae (stone monuments) with inscriptions in several languages, describing the construction and its benefits. The canal not only facilitated trade but also solidified Darius's control over Egypt and enhanced

9600-535: Was discovered about 30 kilometres (19 mi) north of Mount Catherine in January 2020, dates back to the Chalcolithic Period, c.  5th –4th millennium BCE. From the time of the First Dynasty or before, the Egyptians mined turquoise in Sinai at two locations, now called by their Egyptian Arabic names Wadi Maghareh and Serabit el-Khadim . The mines were worked intermittently and on

9700-736: Was discovered in 1969, and the Midyan Field in 1992, both within the Midyan Basin on the Saudi Arabian side of the Red Sea. The 20-m thick Middle Miocene Maqna Formation is an oil source rock in the basin. Oil seeps occur near the Farasan Islands , the Dahlak Archipelago , along the coast of Eritrea, and in the southeastern Red Sea along the coasts of Saudi Arabia and Yemen. In terms of mineral resources

9800-399: Was the lightly armed Muslim pilgrim convoys, rather than the well guarded cities of Mecca and Medina, and the belief in the Muslim world that Reynald was seeking to sack the holy cities, due to the proximity of those cities to the areas that Raynald raided. In 1513, trying to secure that channel to Portugal, Afonso de Albuquerque laid siege to Aden but was forced to retreat. They cruised

9900-467: Was the main region where mining of turquoise was carried out in Ancient Egypt, it was called Biau (the "Mining Country") and Khetiu Mafkat ("Ladders of Turquoise") by the ancient Egyptians. The origin of the modern name is a source of contention (see Biblical Mount Sinai for a fuller discussion). The name Sinai ( Hebrew : סִינַי , Classical Syriac : ܣܝܢܝ ) may have been derived from

10000-486: Was under the control of Fatimid Caliphate . Later, Sultan Saladin abolished the Fatimid Caliphate in Egypt and took this region under his control too. It was the military route from Cairo to Damascus during the Crusades. And in order to secure this route, he built a citadel on the island of Pharaoh (near present Taba) known by his name ' Saladin's Citadel '. The peninsula was governed as part of Egypt under

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