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June 26,
2009, 6:38pm
TODAY is the National Day of Djibouti.
Djibouti is a country in the Horn of Africa. It is bordered by Eritrea
in the north, Ethiopia in the west and south, and Somalia in the
southeast. The remainder of the border is formed by the Red Sea and the
Gulf of Aden. The capital of Djibouti is the city of Djibouti. Located
at this intersection of trade routes connecting the Indian Ocean with
the Mediterranean Sea, and Africa with the Middle East, Djibouti has
long been a cultural and commercial crossroads.
The early Djiboutians traded hides and skins for the perfumes and spices
of ancient Egypt, India, and China, trading which goes back thousands of
years. French interest developed in the nineteenth century when the area
was ruled by the sultan of Raheita, Tadjoura, and Gobaad. The French the
anchorage of Obock in 1862 and expanded it into a colony called French
Somaliland with essentially the current boundaries. In 1967, the area
became the French overseas territory of the Afars and Issas. The
Republic of Djibouti gained its independence from France on June 27,
1977.
Djibouti is an Islamic country which regularly takes part in Islamic
affairs as well as Arab meetings. The economy of Djibouti is based on
service activities on the capital’s modern seaport. Two-thirds of the
inhabitants live in the capital city, the remainder being mostly nomadic
herders.
We congratulate the people and government of Djibouti headed by Their
Excellencies, President Ismail Omar Guelleh and Prime Minister Dileita
Mohamed Dileita, on the occasion of their National Day.
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