lions in the area. The two last felines were killed in a mountain near the city of Oran, which is now known as La montagne des Lions ("The Mountain of Lions"). In fact, there are two giant lion statues in front of Oran's city hall, hence the twin lions' mountain is Oran's symbol.
Oran today
Today, Oran is a major port and a commercial centre, and has three universities. The old quarter of Oran has a casbah and an 18th century mosque.
Oran has become a major trading centre for the wider area, serving Arzew, the areas oil/gas port as well as Sonatrach, the countries biggest oil and gas company. Sonalgas has built a new congress centre in Oran and in 2010 the 16th International Conference & Exhibition on Liquefied Natural Gas will be held in the city of Oran, which is expected to attract around 3,000 visitors and major companies from around the world. To accommodate all visitors, new hotels are currently being constructed and floating hotels will be used in addition
