Aqaba is Jordan's only port city, located on the Gulf of Aqaba in the extreme south of the country. Aqaba is Jordan's window on the Red Sea. Aqaba has experienced great development in recent years, a fact that has led to the improved infrastructure and facilities. Aqaba has been an inhabited settlement since 4000 BC due to its strategic location at the crossroads of trade routes between Asia and Africa. During World War I, the Ottoman forces were forced to withdraw from Aqaba after a raid, known as the Battle of Aqaba, led by TE Lawrence (known as Lawrence of Arabia) and the Arab forces of Sharif Hussein in 1917. The most important sites to see in Aqaba are: • Aqaba Fort Originally dating from the 14th century AD, although the present structure was built by the Mamluk Sultan el-Ghawri Qansawh (1501-1516) and has been revised many times since. • Ayla, (next to the Moevenpick complex). The ancient city that was established when Islam arrived in the area in 622 AD. • Roman Church of the 4th century: The oldest Christian church in history. • Aqaba Museum: This unique museum is definitely one of the main attractions of Aqaba as it displays a variety of assets, as well as life-size models of traditional life in one of the oldest cities in Jordan. It also contains a collection of rare historical images from the beginning of the last century to the present.