Bizerte

Bizerte, also Bizerta (ancient Hippo Diarrhytus and Hippo Zarytus), city and seaport of Tunisia, on the Mediterranean Sea. The outer harbor of the city is connected by canal with two inner harbors, the Bay of Sebra and the Lake of Bizerte. Olives are grown in the surrounding region, and the lake contains valuable fisheries. Refined petroleum, fish products, flour, and olive oil are manufactured.

Bizerte was first occupied by colonists from the Phoenician capital Tyre. The town later became a Roman colony, but after the 7th century ad it was held by the Arabs. Following 1881, when France seized Tunisia and made it a protectorate, the French dredged channels and canals, further modernized the harbor, and built naval installations on the lakeshore. German military forces occupied the port early in World War II. On May 7, 1943, Allied troops captured Bizerte. Population (1998 estimate) 105,520.