Uqba ibn Nafi Uqba ibn Nafi ( " ‘ Uqbah ibn Nāfi ‘ " , also referred to as Oqba ibn Nafi , Uqba bin Nafe , Uqba ibn al Nafia , or Akbah ; 622 – 683 ) was an Arab general who was serving the Umayyad dynasty , in Muawiyah and Yazid periods , who began the Islamic conquest of the Maghreb , including present - day Algeria , Tunisia , Libya and Morocco in North Africa . He was the nephew of ' Amr ibn al - ' As . Uqba is often surnamed al - Fihri in reference to the Banu Fihri , a clan connected to the Quraysh . His descendants would be known as the ' Oqbids ' or ' Fihrid s ' . Uqba is the founder of the cultural city of Kairouan in Tunisia . Uqba accompanied Al - ‘ As in his initial raids and capture of cities in North Africa starting with Barca , then proceeding to Tripolitania in 644 AD . In 670 now the emir or commander , Uqba led an Arab army to North Africa , crossing the Egypt ian deserts , and setting up military posts at regular intervals along his route . In a region of what is now Tunisia , he established the town now called Kairouan ( Kairwan or al Qayrawan , meaning " camp " or " caravanserai " in Persian ) about 160 kilometres south of present - day Tunis , which he used as a base for further operations . According to one legend , one of Uqba ' s soldiers stumbled across a golden goblet buried in the sands . It was recognized as one that had disappeared from Mecca some years before , and when it was dug out of the sand a spring appeared , with waters said to come from the same source as those of the sacred Zamzam Well in Mecca . This story led to Kairouan becoming a place of pilgrimage , and then a holy city ( the Mecca of the Maghreb ) and the most important city in North Africa . In 683 Uqba was ambushed and killed near Biskra by Kusaila . Ironically he died beside his hated rival Abu al - Muhajir Dinar , during the battle with Kusaila ' s troops . His armies evacuated Kairouan and withdrew to Barqa ( though Kairouan was recaptured in 688 ) . His descendants can be found in the area stretching from the Lake Chad region to Mauritania ' s coast . The trans - sahel Arab tribe of " Kounta " traces its origins to Uqba , in Algeria , Tunisia and Libya some of his descendants are known as Ouled Sidi Ukba . Historical accounts . Most of the accounts which describe Arab conquests of North Africa in general and Uqba ' s conquests in particular date back to at least two centuries after the conquests have happened . One of the earliest reports come from the Andalucian chronicler Ibn Idhari Al - Marrakushi in his " Al - Bayan al - Mughrib fi akhbar al - Andalus " . In it , Ibn Idhari describes the moment when Uqba reached the $ 3 saying " Oh God , if the sea had not prevented me , I would have galloped on for ever like Alexander the Great , upholding your faith and fighting the unbelievers ! . " Edward Gibbon , referring to Uqba ibn Nafi as " Akbah " , gives him the title " conqueror of Africa , " beginning his story when he " marched from Damascus at the head of ten thousand of the bravest Arabs ; and the genuine force of the Moslems was enlarged by the doubtful aid and conversion of many thousand Barbarians . " He then marched into North Africa . Gibbon continues : " It would be difficult , nor is it necessary , to trace the accurate line of the progress of Akbah . " On the North African coast , " the well - known titles of Bugia , and Tangier define the more certain limits of the Saracen victories . " Gibbon then tells the story of Akbah ' s conquest of the Roman province of Mauretania Tingitana . It should be pointed out that although much scholarship on the life and conquests of ibn Nafi are available , most have not been translated from their original Arabic into English or French .