BBC News

Harar – a long history:

7th Century: Part of Coptic Christian Kingdom of Axum, area adopted Islam

1007: Harar city founded

16th Century: Capital of Harari Kingdom, major centre of regional trade and Islamic learning

Said by some to be Islam’s fourth holiest site, after Mecca, Jerusalem and Medina

1887: Becomes part of Ethiopia

2006: Named UNESCO World Heritage site

Full Ethiopian Timeline

One of Africa’s best kept secrets – its history

The city’s fortified walls, built between the 13th and 16th Centuries, even have small holes in them to allow the hyenas to enter the city at night.

The daily hyena feeding spectacle is just one example of this city’s unique heritage.

“This is one of the world’s ancient civilisations,” local historian Abdulswamad Idris tells me.
“Some of the mosques you see here were built in the 10th Century.”

Early convert to Islam

Harar is a city that goes by many names, from the city of saints to a living museum, while some consider it to be Islam’s fourth holiest city after Mecca, Jerusalem and Medina.

It has even been called the city of peace, a name I spot on one huge neon sign as I enter the town.

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