File:Liwa Fort.jpg

English: Liwa Fort:

The Liwa oasis stretches over 113km and has many fortresses that once protected this strategic site. t is one of the most beautiful experiences in the country

The big empty quarter is an inhospitable desert where it seems impossible to survive as water is scarce. But there is in the heart of the Liwa desert an oasis of 113 kilometers where life is possible, as evidenced by its thousands of palm trees. It is therefore natural that for centuries men have settled there and developed food crops. In the basement, a gigantic groundwater table that was filled two million years ago when precipitation was more abundant.It is difficult to trace the history of the Oasis because few testimonies remain. The forts that we will present to you would have been built in the late 19th century or early 20th century, and are historically valuable. They have been restored under the patronage of the Ministry of Culture of Abu Dhabi, maybe to excess, and it is very difficult to know if the restoration has remained faithful to the original.The nomadic tribes that inhabited the region of Al Gharbia lived in summer in the oasis of Liwa which brought a certain freshness, and the winter on the coast where they engaged in fishing.Today the Liwa Oasis has another strategic function: the city of Abu Dhabi has only three days of water supply, which is very little in case of conflict, and the neutralization of its desalination plant could kneel the population. Then hundreds of kilometers of water pipes connect the groundwater of the oasis of Liwa to Abu Dhabi, bringing to 90 days the water reserve of the city. And the Mirfa desalination plant injects desalinated water into the natural reservoir of the Liwa Oasis.