|Elevation||28 m (92 ft)| Sirte (also spelled Sirt, Surt, Sert
or Syrte; pronounced /ˈsɜrt/; Arabic: سرت, pronunciation
(help·info); from Ancient Greek: Σύρτις) is a city in Libya. It
is on the south coast of the Gulf of Sidra (ancient Syrtis
Major, from which Sirte's name is derived). Sirte lies halfway
between Tripoli and Benghazi. The settlement was established in
the early 20th century by the Italians, at the site of a 19th-
century fortress built by the Ottomans. It grew into a city
after World War II. As the birthplace of Muammar Gaddafi, Sirte
was favoured by the Gaddafi government. The city was the final
major stronghold of Gaddafi loyalists in the Libyan civil war
and Gaddafi was killed there by rebel forces on 20 October 2011.
During the battle, Sirte was left almost completely in ruins,
with many buildings totally destroyed or damaged. Six months
after the civil war, almost 60,000 inhabitants, more than 70
percent of pre-war population, had returned. Early history
Sirte is built near the site of th