Superpositional tectonic patterns along the continental margin of the southeastern Mediterranean: a review

Resurgent tectonic phases superimposed their structural imprints on the continental margin of the southeastern Mediterranean. This margin underwent a complete cycle, from a margin of a marine basin in the Paleozoic, to the margin of the incipient Neo-Tethys ocean in the early Jurassic, through the margin of the mature ocean in the late Jurassic, Cretaceous, and Paleogene. It became the margin of a desiccated marine basin in the late Miocene, and finally became the margin of a rejuvenated marine basin after the Pliocene. The margin was affected by folding, faulting and intermittent volcanism during the early Liassic, early Neocomian, late Cretaceous, Oligocene and early Miocene. The younger tectonic phases were superimposed on the older ones, reactivating them in some places and masking them in others. The geological characteristics and this complex tectonic history are masked effectively by the thick Messinian evaporitic sequence. This smoothing effect was further enhanced by the huge pile of sediments that has been deposited by the River Nile since the early Pliocene.