A naval battle fought at Prevesa, Greece, ended in the destruction of three Ottoman ships and the recognition of Italian sovereignty over the Port of Tripoli.
British forces governed the area after World War II until Libyan independence in 1951 World Ports History: Tripoli[1]Since Roman Libya the port of Tripoli (then called Oea) was one of the main in coastal Mediterranean Africa.
In the Middle Ages the port fell into disuse, but under Ottoman rule started to grow in importance.
In 1985 major cargo-handling ports were located at Tripoli, Benghazi, Tobruk, and Qasr Ahmad (near Misratah).
Projects underway at Tripoli in 1985 were designed to raise the port's handling capacity to 12.5 million tons a year.