The celebrated Mahdia deception belonged to a broader campaign that also involved Djerba, Tripoli, Sousse, and Sfax. George already knew Sousse from his earlier governorship, and its ruler fled to Morocco when the city surrendered without a fight. Sfax then fell within roughly a year of uninterrupted conquest. These operations used the fleet to assemble a connected chain of ports, taxable commerce, and political control along the African coast rather than simply conducting raids.
Chapter · 42:46-46:09
Tripoli, Sousse, and Sfax complete an African port campaign
Mahdia formed part of a wider sequence of port seizures that gave Norman Sicily temporary command of important North African trade routes.