Msallata is a town in the northwestern part of Libya

Libya

Libya is an African country in the Maghreb region of North Africa bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Sudan to the southeast, Chad and Niger to the south, and Algeria and Tunisia to the west....

, in the Murqub District. It has a population of nearly 24,000, and was historically a center of Islamic studies. It is also known for olive tree farming and olive oil production. The Tripolian Republic was announced in Msallata on 16 November 1918 which was the first republic in the Arab world. Along with the city of Tarhuna, it gave its name to the former Libyan district of Tarhuna wa Msalata.

Etymology

There has not been any research on the etymology of the name Msallata, but there is some speculation as to its origins. One theory is that the name comes from the plural of the Arabic word for obelisk

Obelisk

An obelisk is a tall, four-sided, narrow tapering monument which ends in a pyramid-like shape at the top, and is said to resemble a petrified ray of the sun-disk. A pair of obelisks usually stood in front of a pylon...

 masalla which is masallat because the city is the home of 22 tall buildings called qasaba. Others speculate that the name comes from the Arabic word salt (scrubbing), which also has the more specific meaning of 'scrubbing olive from its tree', with M in the beginning being a variant of the Himyarite definite article am-. Supporters of this argument mention the fact that Msallata is famous for its olive production. However, none of these claims have been scientifically substantiated.

During the 2011 civil war

Reuters reported clashes in Msallata on 3 August, in which three people were killed. By 5 August, AFP was reporting that the town, whose residents had joined the rebellion in its early stages, had come under siege. Government troops controlled the roads leading into the town, had cut off electricity and communications and had begun arresting people in the suburbs.