Sinai Peninsula /

The Sinai Peninsula or Sinai (Arabic: سيناء‎ sīnā' ; Hebrew סיני) is a triangular peninsula in Egypt about 60,000 km (23,000 sq mi) in area. It is situated between the Mediterranean Sea to the north, and the Red Sea to the south, and it is the only part of Egyptian territory located in Asia as opposed to Africa. The bulk of the peninsula is divided into two Egyptian governorates (with three more splitting the Suez Canal area), and has a population of approximately 500,000 people. The region has historically been the center of conflict between various political factions, based largely on its location. In addition to periods of direct rule by Egyptian governments (including the Ayyubids, the Mamluks, the Muhammad Ali Dynasty, and the modern Egyptian republic), it was like the rest of Egypt also occupied and controlled by the Ottoman Empire, and the United Kingdom which occupied Egypt from 1882 onwards. Israel occupied Sinai in the Suez Crisis of 1956, and again during the Six Day War of 1967. In the October War of 1973, it was the site of fierce fighting between Egyptian and Israeli forces. In 1982, after the Israel-Egypt Peace Treaty of 1979, Israel withdrew from the entirety of