Italian ship sunk at Bizerta, Tunisia, in 1943

A half-submerged sinking Italian merchant ship in the harbour at Bizerta, Tunisia, in 1943. Bizerta is a seaport of Tunisia. Next to Toulon, Bizerta is the most important naval port of France in the Mediterranean. It occupies a strategical position in the narrowest part of the sea. The town is built on the shores of the Mediterranean at the point where the Lake of Bizerta enters the sea through a natural channel. Bizerta was a key strategic position for the Axis powers during the Second World War as it was an important site for the maintence of communications with North Africa. However, it was taken by the Allied forces in May 1943, and then became a significant part of the journey between Alexandria and Gibraltar as a refueling stop.