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Economy
Latakia is now the principal port of Syria; it is located on a
good harbour, with an extensive agricultural hinterland. Exports
include bitumen and asphalt, cereals, cotton, fruit, eggs, vegetable
oil, pottery, and tobacco. Cotton ginning, vegetable-oil processing,
tanning, and sponge fishing are local industries. The University of
Latakia was founded in 1971 and renamed Gami't Tishrin (University
of October) in 1976. The city is linked by road to
Aleppo,
Homs,
Tripoli, and Beirut. All but a few classical buildings have
been destroyed, often by earthquakes; those remaining include a Roman
triumphal arch and Corinthian columns known as the colonnade of
Bacchus.
Latakia governorate has an area
of 887 sq mi (2,297 sq km) and embraces Syria's fertile Mediterranean
coastal area. It is an important agricultural region, producing
abundant crops of tobacco, cotton, cereal grains, and fruits.
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Main References: The
Syrian, Britannica, Encarta and Columbia encyclopedias, Syriagate,
Cafesyria .... |
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