Ras Al Khafji or
Khafji (الخفجي) is a town on the border between
Saudi ArabiaThe Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
and
KuwaitThe State of Kuwait is a sovereign Arab state situated in the north-east of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the south at Khafji, and Iraq to the north at Basra. It lies on the north-western shore of the Persian Gulf. The name Kuwait is derived from the...
. It lies in what was before 1970 a neutral zone between Kuwait and Saudi Arabia. The Japanese-owned Arabian Oil Company Ltd signed a concession agreement with the government of Saudi Arabia in December 1957 and with the government of Kuwait in July 1958 for exploration and development of hydrocarbon reserves in the offshore Neutral Zone. The Arabian Oil Company discovered the Kafji oil field in 1960 and the Hout oil field in 1963.
It was only after the discovery of these oil deposits off-shore of Khafji that a permanent demarcation of the neutral zone between Kuwait and Saudi Arabia was established, with Khafji formally located within
Saudi ArabiaThe Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
. However, the agreement concluded that both states would still maintain joint rights to all natural resources within the designated neutral zone. With the termination of the Arabian Oil Company lease to explore and extract within the area, operations within the Khafji Fields reverted to a joint venture between shareholder companies representing both states, with production being split on a 50:50 agreement between
KuwaitThe State of Kuwait is a sovereign Arab state situated in the north-east of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the south at Khafji, and Iraq to the north at Basra. It lies on the north-western shore of the Persian Gulf. The name Kuwait is derived from the...
and Saudi Arabia.
Khafji’s notoriety, however, is primarily owed to the
Battle of KhafjiThe Battle of Khafji was the first major ground engagement of the Gulf War. It took place in and around the Saudi Arabian city of Khafji, from 29 January to 1 February 1991 and marked the culmination of the Coalition's air campaign over Kuwait and Iraq, which had begun on 17 January 1991.Iraqi...
, which took place in and around the town in 1991 and marked the high tide of
IraqIraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
’s advance through Kuwait and into Saudi Arabia.
History
Al-Khafji largely came into existence following the 1960 discovery of the Al-Khafji oil field. Following the start of commercial oil production, the Arabian Oil Company established a residential compound that was composed of 73 residential quarters, built on a total area of 3000000 square feet (278,709.1 m²), and possessing drainage, electricity, piped water, cable telephones and a road network. The expansion of oil exploration and drilling in the region led the city to gradually expand, generally keeping pace with a trend witnessed throughout the Kingdom.
Location
Khafji is located in Saudi Arabia's Eastern Region along the
Persian GulfThe Persian Gulf, in Southwest Asia, is an extension of the Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.The Persian Gulf was the focus of the 1980–1988 Iran-Iraq War, in which each side attacked the other's oil tankers...
. The city is situated at latitude 28-26 N, longitude 48-30 E. It is 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) south of the Saudi-Kuwaiti border, 130 kilometres (80.8 mi) south of
Kuwait City-Suburbs:Although the districts below are not usually recognized as suburbs, the following is a list of a few areas surrounding Kuwait city:Al-Salam ""السلام"" -Economy:...
and 300 kilometres (186.4 mi) north of
DammamDammam is the capital of the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia, the most oil-rich region in the world. The judicial and administrative bodies of the province and several government departments are located in the city. Dammam is the largest city in the Eastern Province and third largest in Saudi...
.
Climate
Khafji has an arid climate, with a total average annual rainfall of 105 millimetres (4.1 in). The quantity of annual rainfall substantially varies from one year to another, with some years witnessing over 200 millimetres (7.9 in) of precipitation while others see only a few millimetres (fractions of an inch). The average springtime temperature is in the range of 21 °C (69.8 °F), with relative humidity of about 50%. In the summertime the temperature averages around 33 °C (91.4 °F), with relative humidity of about 50%. Autumn sees average temperatures around 29 °C (84.2 °F), with relative humidity of about 50%.
First Gulf War
On January 29, 1991 the Iraqi army invaded Khafji following the
invasion and subsequent occupation of KuwaitThe Invasion of Kuwait, also known as the Iraq-Kuwait War, was a major conflict between the Republic of Iraq and the State of Kuwait, which resulted in the seven-month long Iraqi occupation of Kuwait, which subsequently led to direct military intervention by United States-led forces in the Gulf...
. Saudi, Qatari and
CoalitionThe Coalition of the Gulf War were the countries officially opposed to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait during the 1990 / 1991 Persian Gulf War.-Coalition by number of military personnel:-United States:*Norman Schwarzkopf*Colin Powell*Calvin Waller...
forces compelled the Iraqi army to withdraw from the city on the January 31, 1991 as a consequence of the
Battle of KhafjiThe Battle of Khafji was the first major ground engagement of the Gulf War. It took place in and around the Saudi Arabian city of Khafji, from 29 January to 1 February 1991 and marked the culmination of the Coalition's air campaign over Kuwait and Iraq, which had begun on 17 January 1991.Iraqi...
.
Post Gulf War
In 1995, city officials declared the city safe and mine-free.
Khafji's Future
The Saudi government, in conjunction with Khafji Joint Operations, is promoting large-scale development projects in Khafji with the goal of transforming it into one of the major cities in the country. According to the Saudi government, Khafji is to be the headquarters of a new natural gas company. A separate government project in Khafji is to promote the city as an international tourist destination. The project would publicize and promote Khafji's beaches on the
Persian GulfThe Persian Gulf, in Southwest Asia, is an extension of the Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.The Persian Gulf was the focus of the 1980–1988 Iran-Iraq War, in which each side attacked the other's oil tankers...
during the summer and the temperate weather and desert camping in the winter.
Population
The population of Khafji is roughly 65,000 (2005). A significant proportion of the population is composed of oil company employees and their families, and thus a large proportion of residents came to Khafji from different cities in Saudi Arabia and Kuwait after 1960.
Education
The city lacks institutions offering
post secondary educationHigher, post-secondary, tertiary, or third level education refers to the stage of learning that occurs at universities, academies, colleges, seminaries, and institutes of technology...
for men. Khafji is home to the Girls Education College, a female-only college. In January 2009, Muhammed Al-Umair, Director of Colleges in the Eastern Province opened an investigation into the Girls Education College following reports of piles of garbage lying about the college going uncollected for weeks and alleged late-night break ins by Asian workers exploiting the absence of security guards and staff. Students portrayed toilets at the school as unusable, and the environment at the school was portrayed as lax to the point of being detrimental to scholastic endeavors. The Girls Education College receives a portion of its funding from
ChevronChevron Corporation is an American multinational energy corporation headquartered in San Ramon, California, United States and active in more than 180 countries. It is engaged in every aspect of the oil, gas, and geothermal energy industries, including exploration and production; refining,...
.
Healthcare
Until 1969, Khafji was served by a single hospital, the Company Hospital. In 1969, the Minstery of Health funded the construction of an additional two clinics. In 1996, Al Khafji Joint Operations Hospital (KJO Hospital) opened, and has since been expanded. Currently, KJO Hospital provides for 7,000 inpatient and 80,000 outpatient visits per year. Several private hospitals And private polyclinics have also been established in Khafji to keep up with the needs of citizens and residents in the city, as well as the citizens of neighboring Kuwait, and was most recently the launch of Alrahmah Medical Complex in 2010.
Airport
There is a small airfield in the city owned by
Saudi AramcoSaudi Aramco , officially the Saudi Arabian Oil Company, is the national oil company of Saudi Arabia.Saudi Aramco is the world's largest and most valuable privately-held company, with estimates of its value in 2011 to be $7 trillion USD.Saudi Aramco has both the largest proven crude oil reserves,...
that is not open for public use or commercial service. The nearest domestic airport offering commercial flights is
King Fahd International AirportKing Fahd International Airport is located 20 kilometers northwest of Dammam, Saudi Arabia. It is the largest airport in the world in terms of land area . The airport's basic infrastructure was complete by the end of 1990, which allowed the Allied forces engaged in the first Gulf War in early...
in Dammam, and
Kuwait International AirportKuwait International Airport is located in Farwaniyah, Kuwait, south of Kuwait City. It serves as hub for Jazeera Airways and Kuwait Airways. A portion of the airport complex is designated as Al Mubarak Air Base, which contains the headquarters of the Kuwait Air Force, as well as the Kuwait Air...
is the closest commercial airport to the city.
Culture & Recreation
Many residents of Khafji travel to Kuwait or, to a lesser extent, to Dammam to shop. Both cities offer a greater variety of products and large and well-established markets in contrast to the young but growing retail options in Khafji.