A kasbah Arabic ÙØµØ¨Ø© , or in older English casbah, and qasbah or qassabah in India, is a type of medina, or fortress (citadel). It was a place for the local leader to live and a defense when a city was under attack. A kasbah has high walls, usually without windows. Sometimes, they were built on hilltops so that they could be more easily defended.