İskenderun, Mediterranean port city in Hatay Province, Turkey
İskenderun is a port city on the Gulf of İskenderun in Hatay Province along the Turkish Mediterranean coast. The city sits between the sea and a forested mountain range, with residential neighborhoods, commercial centers, and harbor facilities extending along the shoreline.
Alexander the Great founded a settlement here in 333 BC after his victory at Issos near the Syrian frontier. The city changed rulers several times over the centuries and belonged successively to the Roman Empire, Arab caliphates, Ottoman governors, and briefly to French administration.
The city architecture displays influences from multiple civilizations, with structures from Ottoman, French mandate, and modern Turkish periods throughout its streets.
Most shops and restaurants are concentrated in the city center, which is easy to reach on foot. The harbor and waterfront promenade lie close to downtown, and beaches can be found both north and south of the center.
A pipeline from northern Iraqi oil fields ends in this city, making it an important energy hub in the eastern Mediterranean. The facilities are located in the industrial part of the harbor area and have shaped the cityscape for several decades.
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