Taizz

Taiz
تعز (Taʿizz)

Overview of Taiz

Taiz

Location in Yemen

Coordinates: 13°34′44″N 44°01′19″E / 13.57889°N 44.02194°E

Country

Yemen

Governorate

Taiz

Elevation

4,600 ft (1,400 m)

Population (2014)

• Total

1.615,222

Time zone

Yemen Standard Time (UTC+3)

Taiz (Arabic: تعز‎‎, Taʿizz) is a city in southwestern Yemen. It is located in the Yemeni Highlands, near the port city of Mocha on the Red Sea, lying at an elevation of about 1,400 metres above sea level. It is the capital of Taiz Governorate. With a population of over 600,000 in 2005, it is the third largest city in Yemen after the capital Sana'a and the southern port city of Aden. When Yemen was at peace, it was considered to be the cultural capital of Yemen.

During the 2011 Yemeni Revolution, a battle in Taiz between supporters and opponents of Ali Abdullah Saleh led to a rebel victory. As part of the 2015 Yemeni Civil War, the city endured a military confrontation between Houthis and the forces loyal to Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi. The city was effectively under siege and the United Nations warned of an "extreme and irreversible" food shortage if fighting continued.

In 130 CE the Jewish quarter was established in the city.

Taiz was ruled by Turan-Shah, the older brother of Saladin, after he had conquered Yemen in 1173 CE. Turan-Shah built the citadel on the hill overlooking the old city.

The second Rasulid King, Almaddhafar (1288 CE), established Taiz as the second capital of the Rasulid Dynasty after Zabid. Ibn Battutah visited Taiz in the fourteenth century and described it as one of the largest and most beautiful cities of Yemen.

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