 In 1516 , Gaza — by now a small town with an inactive port , ruined buildings and reduced trade — was incorporated into the Ottoman Empire . The Ottoman army quickly and efficiently crushed a small @-@ scale uprising , and the local population generally welcomed them as fellow Sunni Muslims . Shortly after Palestine 's quick submission to the Ottomans , it was divided into six districts , including the Gaza Sanjak ( District of Gaza ) which stretched from Jaffa in the north to Bayt Jibrin in the east and Rafah in the south . The sanjak was a part of the larger Damascus Eyalet or the " Province of Damascus " . 
