The Port of Gaza is in the Rimal district of Gaza[1] and home to the Palestinian Naval Police force.[2] Originally the name of the Port city was Maioumas which is linked to a licentious Pagan festival.[3][4][5] The Port of Gaza was at the end of the Nabataean spice road. Where trade with the West in herbs, spices incense, drapery, glass and food on the backs of camels came from Southern Arabia (the Kingdom of Sheba) through Petra, the Arava Valley and crossing Negev Desert via Avdat and ending at the port of Gaza for dispatched to the European markets.[6][7] Alexander Jannaeus' conquest of Gaza (99 BCE) that denied the Nabateans access to the port and trade with Rome led to Obodas launching a military campaign against the Hasmonean King. The destruction of the Hasmonean army in the Golan Heights precipitated a decline in Hasmonean fortunes.[8] Gaza Port was rebuilt after it was incorporated into the Roman Empire in 63 BCE under the command of Pompey Magnus and trade routes were reopened.[9]
Israel imposed a naval blockade on Gaza after Hamas were elected, and the restrictions were tightened after Hamas took full control.[10] Several attempts to break the Israeli blockade were made.[11] Israel has prevented most ships from docking at the port of Gaza, but has allowed at least two boats, carrying activists and some supplies to reach the port. [12] An Iranian ship sailing from Bandar Abbas to the port of Gaza, with humanitarian aid, was diverted during the 2008–2009 Israel–Gaza conflict.[13]
In 2005, Israel approved Palestinian plans to rebuild and complete the Port of Gaza, which was destroyed by Israeli forces following the outbreak of the Second Intifada. Some academics have argued that a port which is under full Palestinian control is an essential step to achieving a lasting peace between Israel and a future Palestinian state.[14] [15]
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  | Jpost - Navy lets another boat into Gaza port | Middle East | Jerusalem Post |
| | Israeli MFA - Avdat - A Nabatean City in the Negev |
| | New York Times - The New York Times > Log In |
| | Telegraph - Palestinians to rebuild Gaza sea port in latest peace move - Telegraph |
| | Haaretz - U.S. leftists confirm plans to sail to Gaza to break siege - Haaretz - Israel News |
| | Guardian - Israeli navy blocks Gaza aid ship | World news | guardian.co.uk |
| | BBC - BBC News | MIDDLE EAST | Israeli navy attacks Gaza port |
| | Gaza - (Gaza, al -'Azzah) - Discussion: 123. Gaza - (Gaza, al -'Azzah) |
| | Hecht Museum - Hecht Museum - The Nabateans in the Negev |
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