Mashhad vs Annaba

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Mashhad (Persian: مشهد‎, romanized: Mašhad [mæʃˈhæd] (listen)), also spelled Mashad or Meshad, is the second-most-populous city in Iran and the capital of Razavi Khorasan Province. It is located in the northeast of the country. It has a population of 3,001,184 (2016 census), which includes the areas of Mashhad Taman and Torqabeh. It was a major oasis along the ancient Silk Road connecting with Merv to the east. The city is named after the shrine of Imam Reza, the eighth Shia Imam. The Imam was buried in a village in Khorasan, which afterward gained the name Mashhad, meaning the place of martyrdom. Every year, millions of pilgrims visit the Imam Reza shrine. The Abbasid caliph Harun al-Rashid is also buried within the same shrine. Mashhad has been governed by different ethnic groups over the course of its history.

The city enjoyed relative prosperity in the Mongol period. Mashhad is also known colloquially as the city of Ferdowsi, after the Iranian poet who composed the Shahnameh. The city is the hometown of some of the most significant Iranian literary figures and artists, such as the poet Mehdi Akhavan-Sales, and Mohammad-Reza Shajarian, the traditional Iranian singer and composer. Ferdowsi and Akhavan-Sales are both buried in Tus, an ancient city that is considered to be the main origin of the current city of Mashhad. On 30 October 2009 (the anniversary of Imam Reza's martyrdom), Iran's then-President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad declared Mashhad to be "Iran's spiritual capital".

Source: Wikipedia

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Annaba (Arabic: عنّابة‎, lit "Place of the Jujubes"; Berber languages: Aânavaen), formerly known as Bona and Bône, is a seaport city in the northeastern corner of Algeria, close to Tunisia. Annaba is close to the small Seybouse River, and it is in the Annaba Province. With a population of about 464,740 (2019) and 1,000,000 for the metropole, Annaba is the 3rd largest city in Algeria. It is the leading industrial center in Algeria.

Annaba is a coastal city that underwent significant growth during the 20th Century. Annaba has a metropolitan area with a higher population density than the other metropolitan areas of the Algerian coastline, such as Oran and Algiers. Much of eastern and southern Algeria uses the services, equipment, and infrastructure of Annaba. Economically, it is the centre for various economic activities, such as industry, transportation, finance, and tourism.

Source: Wikipedia