The capital of the Tunisian Sahel - sometimes referred to as the "pearl of the Sahel" - and capital of the Sahel, the population of its municipality reaches 221,530 inhabitants in 20141, while its agglomeration is close to 500,000 inhabitants. Which makes it the third largest city in the country after Tunis and Sfax. The Medina of Sousse has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1988.
The Medina of Sousse, like that of Tunis, is listed as a World Heritage Site by Unesco (registered in 1988). One of the elements that distinguish it is the location of the main mosque that is not in the center of the city. Like the ribat, it was responsible for protecting the artificial basin from the arsenal, which explains its military appearance.
The ribat was born during the reign of the dynasty of the Aghlabids (821) but, after the building of the city walls in 85911, gradually lost its military function. While on the first floor there is a small mosque, the basement is arranged in various premises and shops while traces of an olive press remain. The imposing entrance flanked by two corinthian-style pillars is conceived as a double door, thus blocking access to the fortress. As for the kasbah, it is located in the highest part of the medina and dates from the year 84411. In 853, a lighthouse 30 meters high is named after a eunuch of the aghladide ruler Ziadet-Allah I (Khalaf El Fata). It is within its walls that the Archaeological Museum of Sousse is housed since 195112.
