Exterior view of the massive limestone walls of the Saladin Citadel (Qal'at Salah El-Din) in the Al-Khalifa district of Cairo, with visitors and parked cars in the foreground and tall palm trees lining the wall. In the background, the Ottoman-style Mohamed Ali Mosque with its distinctive minaret dominates the skyline, while the green dome of Suleiman Pasha Al-Khadim Mosque (Saryet El Gabal), one of the oldest Ottoman mosques in Egypt, is visible to the right. The Citadel was founded by Saladin in 1176 AD and served as the seat of Egyptian government for nearly 700 years.