El Alamein (or Al Alamayn) (Arabic: العلمين, which means "the two flags") is a town in northern Egypt on the Mediterranean Sea coast in Matruh Governorate. It is 106 kilometres (66 mi) west of Alexandria and 240 kilometres (149 mi) northwest of Cairo. The population was about 7,397 in 2007.
Until recently, it has mainly been a port facility for shipping oil, but like the whole north coast of Egypt is now developing as a luxury resort.
Two import...
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El Alamein (or Al Alamayn) (Arabic: العلمين, which means "the two flags") is a town in northern Egypt on the Mediterranean Sea coast in Matruh Governorate. It is 106 kilometres (66 mi) west of Alexandria and 240 kilometres (149 mi) northwest of Cairo. The population was about 7,397 in 2007.
Until recently, it has mainly been a port facility for shipping oil, but like the whole north coast of Egypt is now developing as a luxury resort.
Two important World War II battles were fought in the area:
El Alamein has a war museum with collectibles from "the civil war" and other North African battles. Visitors can also go to the Italian and German Military Cemetery on Tel el-Eisa Hill just outside the town. The German cemetery is an ossuary with the remains of 4,200 German soldiers, built in the style of a medieval fortress. The Italian cemetery is a mausoleum containing many galleries of tombs. Many tombs bear the soldier's name; many are simply marked "IGNOTO", unknown.
There is also a...
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