Leo of Tripoli

Leon of Tripoli, known in Arabic sources as Rasiq al - Wardami or Ghulam Zurafa, was a Greek renegade and pirate who fought in the early 10th century for the Abbasidenkalifat.

Leon came from Attaleia why he is referred to by John Skylitzes as Leon Attaleus. Leon came (probably at a young age ) in an Arab raid in captivity. He lived in the household of the Arab governor Zurafa, converted to Islam and worked subsequently as Flottenkommandat in Arabic services. He repeatedly took privateering in the Byzantine Empire. 904 he undertook with 54 large ships a push towards Konstantin Opel. However, after the capture of Abydos, he changed his plans and began heading for the important city of Thessaloniki, which was not as heavily defended as the Byzantine capital. His greatest success was ultimately plundering the city in July 904, which took place under his command. He freed Muslim prisoners and captured several Byzantine ships.

912 he proposed a Byzantine fleet and took 921/22 privateering in the Aegean Sea. He devastated Lemnos, but was then defeated by a Byzantine fleet under the command of John Radenos. Leon himself barely escaped and is no longer mentioned in the sources.