Safaqis

Safaqis (säfä`kĭs) or Sfax (sfäks), city (1994 pop. 230,900), E Tunisia, on the Gulf of Qabis (Gabès), an arm of the Mediterranean Sea. It is Tunisia's second largest city and has exports of phosphates, olive oil, cereals, and sponges. A major fishing port, there are oil fields nearby. Safaqis was the site of Phoenician and Roman colonies. It was briefly held by Roger II of Sicily (c.1150) and by the Spanish (16th cent.). Later it became a stronghold of the Barbary pirates.

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Sfax

 or Safaqis

Port city (pop., 1994: 230,900), east-central Tunisia. Built on the site of two ancient settlements, the city grew as an Islamic trading centre. It was occupied by the Normans in the 12th century and by the Spanish in the 16th century, and later served as a stronghold of the Barbary Coast pirates. The town was bombarded by the French in 1881 prior to their occupation of Tunisia and again in World War II (1939–45), when it was a base for German forces until taken by the British in 1943. Tunisia's second-largest city, it is a transportation hub and a major fishing port.