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After years of dust and closure, the stage lights are back on in Tripoli. One of Libya's most iconic Ottoman-era theaters has officially reopened, reborn as a dedicated space for the nation's youth after a six-month reconstruction effort.
The venue, described as a historic theater in the old city of Tripoli, Libya's capital, reopened on Sunday with what officials called a modern look. Its new identity as the Libya National Children's Theater marks the end of a lengthy period in which the site had been shut down and left out of service.
The reconstruction was carried out by the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA), a Turkish state aid and development agency that runs international restoration and support projects.
Libyan Culture Minister Mebruke Tugi linked the reopening to a cooperation framework between Libya and Türkiye, saying the project stood among the outcomes of a memorandum of understanding signed with the Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism and supported through TIKA's efforts.
She indicated the agreement helped pave the way for practical work to be carried out on the ground, allowing the theater to be brought back into use.
According to Ali Suha Bacanakgil, TIKA's coordinator in Tripoli, the theater was first put up in the early 1900s under Ottoman Sultan Abdulhamid II.
He said the building had, over time, become derelict and unusable, and he added that the revamp was wrapped up in six months, clearing the way for the reopening and its relaunch as a children's theater.
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