Ribat (in Arabic "hotel") is a fortress built in the VIII century. It once protected the inhabitants of Monastir from the attacks of the Christians. The fortress was built a lighthouse and a high watch tower, which was on duty the monks-soldiers. The Ribat was built over many centuries, constantly nastraivanie and strengthened. After one of such extensions area of the monastery was about 4 000 sq. m., most of the buildings were built from VIII to XIX century.

In the middle of the fortress there is a small courtyard where you could get the warriors out of their rooms. Through a lot of transitions and passages in the walls that have arisen because of the constant rearrangements close to Ribat of Sousse, and like a maze, you can go to the watchtower, built like all the other bastions in XVII-XVIII centuries, offering beautiful views of Monastir and the sea.

In the oldest part of the fortress, in the former prayer rooms opened Islamic Museum, established in 1958, in which there are manuscripts, pottery and glass, made by the monks. One of the most interesting exhibits is the astrolabe, made in 927.

In the fortress repeatedly acted feature films on historical themes.