Gaza Palestinian city Strip Jerusalem Ancient Egyptian fortress Canaanite territory
Gaza is a Palestinian city in the Gaza Strip, approximately 78 kilometers (48 mi) southwest of Jerusalem. Settlement in the region of Gaza dates back to Tell as-Sakan, an Ancient Egyptian fortress built in Canaanite territory to the south of present-day Gaza. The site went into decline throughout the Early Bronze Age II as its trade with Egypt sharply decreased. Another urban center known as Tell al-Ajjul began to grow along the Wadi Ghazza riverbed. During the Middle Bronze Age, a revived Tell as-Sakan became the southernmost locality in Palestine, serving as a fort. In 1650 BCE the Canaanite Hyksos occupied Egypt and a second city developed on the ruins of the first Tell as-Sakan. However, the city was abandoned by the 14th century, at the end of the Bronze Age. Gaza later served as Egypt’s administrative capital in Canaan. During the reign of Tuthmosis III, the city became a stop on the Syrian-Egyptian caravan route and was mentioned in the Amarna letters as "Azzati". Gaza remained under Egyptian control for 350 years until it was conquered by the Philistines in the 12th century BCE, becoming a part of their "pentapolis". In Judeo-Christian religions, Gaza was the place where Samson was imprisoned and met his death. The prophets Amos and Zephaniah prophesied that Gaza would be deserted. After being ruled by the Israelites, Assyrians, then the Egyptians, Gaza achieved relative independence and prosperity under the Persian Empire. Alexander the Great besieged Gaza, the last city to resist his conquest on his path to Egypt, for five months before finally capturing it 332 BCE; the inhabitants were either killed or taken captive. Alexander brought in local Bedouins to populate Gaza and organized the city into a polis (or "city-state"). Greek culture took root and Gaza earned a reputation as a flourishing center of Hellenic learning and philosophy. Gaza experienced another siege in 96 BCE by the Hasmonean king Alexander Jannaeus; the city was d
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