Sefar... City of Jinn

Sévar sits deep in the Djanet desert, in Illizi province of southeast Algeria. People call it the City of the Jinn and also the “Bermuda Triangle of Algeria.” The site spreads across 90,000 square kilometres of the Tassili n'Ajjer mountains. UNESCO listed the area as a World Heritage Site in 1982. The ground is too rough for cars or walkers to map it all - workers fly drones to see what lies where.

Stories about Sévar have grown for years. A European, Henry Elliott, is said to have shown the place to the outside world while the French ruled Algeria - a local guide, Sheikh Jibril Ek Muhammad, led him there. The site holds thousands of stone rooms and more than 15,000 painted or carved pictures. The pictures show people wearing winged packs, human like beings in diving suits, tube shaped boats, giraffes, cows and other beasts. Some viewers claim the art points to beings from the sky or to spirits.

A European team that visited in 2018 says the city is older than humankind and that jinn once lived there, because the buildings and carvings look unlike anything human hands shape. Other voices speak of visits from star travellers or ties to Plato's lost land of Atlantis. Strange marks on the rocks show figures in space suits and craft that look like flying saucers.

Rumours cling to the place. One tale says the mystic Alistair Crowley entered a cave with thirty followers - only he came back out. The site lies far from any road and maps offer little help - the mystery draws travellers. Cars stop at the last track - from that point walkers or donkeys finish the trip.