Sfax is a city in Tunisia, located 270 km (168 miles) southeast of Tunis. The city, founded in AD 849 on the ruins of Taparura and Thaenae, is the capital of the Sfax Governorate, and a Mediterranean port on the Gulf of Gabes. Sfax has population of 340,000 (2005)[1], and is an industrial center for processing phosphates. The city was often described as Tunisia's Second city, because only Tunis has more inhabitants. Nowadays, Sfax lost this position for other tunisan cities which hold more developed touristic and industrial activities.