Ksar el Barka

Ksar el Barka is the ruins of a caravan town on the western Tagant Plateau in Mauritania, approximately 50 km north of Moudjeria. Founded in 1690 by the Kunta, a Moorish tribal group influenced by the Sufi Qadiriyya order, it quickly gained importance as a caravanserai along trans-Saharan trade routes. In 1753, it was declared a sanctuary by Sheikh Sidel Moctar El Kounti. French colonial expansion, severe droughts in the 1970s-80s, and shifting trade routes led to its abandonment. Remains include residential fragments and an impressive mosque.