BIZERTE

also spelled Bizerta, or Banzart, town, northern Tunisia. It lies along the Mediterranean coast, at the mouth of a channel that links Lake Bizerte with the sea. The town originated as a Phoenician outpost and was known through Carthaginian and Roman times as Hippo Diarrhytus or Hippo Zarytus. Captured in AD 661 by Ibn al-Hadaij, it was given the name Bizerte. It was occupied by the Spanish from 1535 to 1572 but later became a privateering stronghold. The town's maritime value was completely transformed in 1895 when the French completed a canal, south of the town and of the natural channel's mouth, leading from Lake Bizerte to the sea. This artificial channel converted the lake into a fine roadstead and opened up the naval port and arsenal of Sidi Abdallah (now Manzil Bu Ruqaybah [Menzel-Bourguiba]), at the lake's southwestern end. The canal also altered the layout of Bizerte, as a new town was built on the canal's outlet. The old town (surrounded by an ancient wall) was on the mouth of the natural channel, which has since been filled in. Bizerte was an important military base during the French Protectorate (18811955). It is now a seaport, administrative centre, regional market centre, and beach resort. Bizerte was divested of its military function in 1963, but its port still exports fish, phosphates, iron ore, and cereals. Oil refining, which was begun in 1964, is the town's main industry, and there is also some fish canning. The town is linked by road and rail with Tunis and Tabarqah (Tabarka) and has an airport. Pop. (1994) town, 98,900.