Muammar Gaddafi was a Libyan politician, socialist revolutionary, and political theorist who ruled Libya from 1969 until his assassination in 2011 by rebel forces. Born Muammar Muhammad Abu Minyar al-Gaddafi, he was de facto leader of Libya, first as Revolutionary Chairman of the Libyan Arab Republic from 1969 to 1977 and then as the Brotherly Leader of the Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya from 1977 to 2011. Initially ideologically committed to Arab nationalism and Arab socialism, Colonel Gaddafi later ruled according to his own Third International Theory.
Muhammad Idris bin Muhammad al-Mahdi as-Senussi was a Libyan political and religious leader who was King of Libya from 24 December 1951 until his overthrow on 1 September 1969. He ruled over the United Kingdom of Libya from 1951 to 1963, after which the country became known as simply the Kingdom of Libya. Idris had served as Emir of Cyrenaica and Tripolitania from the 1920s until 1951. He was the chief of the Senussi Muslim order.
The Federation of Arab Republics was an unsuccessful attempt by Muammar Gaddafi to merge Libya, Egypt and Syria in order to create a unified Arab state. Although approved by a referendum in each country on 1 September 1971, the three countries disagreed on the specific terms of the merger. The federation lasted from 1 January 1972 to 19 November 1977.
Muammar Gaddafi became the de facto leader of Libya on 1 September 1969 after leading a group of young Libyan Army officers against King Idris I in a bloodless coup d'état. After the king had fled the country, the Revolutionary Command Council (RCC) headed by Gaddafi abolished the monarchy and the old constitution and established the Libyan Arab Republic, with the motto "freedom, socialism and unity".
Abdessalam Jalloud is the former Prime Minister of Libya. His tenure lasted from 16 July 1972 to 2 March 1977, during the government of Muammar Gaddafi. He was also Minister of Treasury from 1970 until 1972.
The Revolutionary Command Council was the twelve-person governing body that ruled the Libyan Arab Republic after the 1969 Libyan coup d'état by the Free Officers Movement. Its chairman was Muammar Gaddafi, who had the most influence. It was ideologically Arab nationalist, republican, anti-imperialist and pan-Arabist.
Umar Abdullah el-Muhayshi, also transliterated as Omar al-Meheshi, was a Libyan army officer and a member of the Libyan Revolutionary Command Council that ruled Libya after the 1969 Libyan coup d'état.
The Qadhadhfa is one of the Arab Ashraf tribes in Libya, living in the Sirte District in present-day northwestern Libya. They are traditionally counted amongst the country's Ashraf tribes, and during the Gaddafi regime were regarded as being one of the greatest and most powerful tribes in the whole country. They are now mostly centered at Qasr Abu Hadi, Sirte.
Warfalla is an Arab tribe that resides in Tripolitania, western Libya, mainly in their stronghold of Bani Walid. Usually estimated to be Libya’s largest tribe with up to one million of the total population of about 8 million people, they are also known as the strongest tribe in Libya with the manpower and equipment they have. Warfalla historically inhabited the area bounded by the cities of Bani Walid, Sirte, and Benghazi as well as the town of Sabha. The Warfalla tribe, along with the Qadhadhfa and Magarha, were the backbone of Muammar Gaddafi's regime. The Warfalla tribe is considered a confederacy of 52 sub-tribes that consist of individual bayts or clans.
The Brotherly Leader and Guide of the Revolution of the Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya was a title held by former Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, who claimed to be merely a symbolic figurehead of the country's official governance structure. However, critics have long described him as a demagogue, referring to his position as the de facto former political office, despite the Libyan state's denial of him holding any power.
The 1969 Libyan coup d'état, also known as the al-Fateh Revolution or the 1 September Revolution, was carried out by the Free Officers Movement, a group of military officers led by Colonel Muammar Gaddafi, which led to the overthrow of the Senussi monarchy of King Idris I and the creation of the Libyan Arab Republic.
The Cultural Revolution in Libya was a period of political and social change in Libya. It started with Muammar Gaddafi's declaration of a cultural revolution during a speech in Zuwara on 15 April 1973. This came after increasing tensions between Gaddafi and his colleagues in the Revolutionary Command Council (RCC) had led him to agree to step down. Gaddafi had told the RCC that he would announce his resignation to the people at the Zuwara speech, but he instead surprised them with his declaration of the Cultural Revolution. By the end of the Cultural Revolution period, Gaddafi was the uncontested leader of Libya.
The 1993 coup d'état was a failed military coup initiated by the Warfalla senior military officers against Libyan leader Muammar el-Qaddafi on 22 October 1993. The coup was led by Khalifa Haftar, a leading senior officer in the Libyan Army who later defected during the coup. The result was the execution of many senior officers and the installment of loyal members.
Al-Khweldi Muhammad Salih Abdullah El-Hamedi, also transliterated as Khuwailidi al-Humaidi, was a Libyan Major General under Muammar Gaddafi, founding member of the Libyan Revolutionary Command Council, and the first Secretary General of the Libyan Popular National Movement. He was part of Gaddafi's inner circle.
Mustafa al-Kharoubi, also transliterated as Kharubi, was a Libyan general and politician under Muammar Gaddafi. He was part of Gaddafi's inner circle.
Abdel Moniem al-Taher al-Houni, also transliterated as Abdul Munim el-Huni, is a Libyan military officer, diplomat, and politician. He was one of the original twelve members of the Libyan Revolutionary Command Council and briefly served as Minister of Foreign Affairs from 1974 to 1975.
Mohammed Emhamed Awad Najm, also transliterated as Muhammad Nejm, was a Libyan major and political figure. He was one of the original twelve members of the Libyan Revolutionary Command Council and also served as Foreign Minister.
The personal life of Muammar Gaddafi was complicated and the subject of significant international interest.
Muammar Gaddafi dominated Libya's politics for four decades and was the subject of a pervasive cult of personality. He was decorated with various awards and praised for his anti-imperialist stance, support for Arab—and then African—unity, as well as for significant development to the country following the discovery of oil reserves. Conversely, many Libyans strongly opposed Gaddafi's social and economic reforms; he was posthumously accused of various human rights violations. He was condemned by many as a dictator whose authoritarian administration systematically violated human rights and financed global terrorism in the region and abroad.
The Free Officers Movement was a group of Arab nationalist and Nasserist officers in the Libyan Army that planned and carried out the 1969 Libyan coup d'état which deposed King Idris and the Libyan monarchy. It was led by a twelve-member cabinet known as the Revolutionary Command Council, whose chairman was Muammar Gaddafi, which came to govern the Libyan Arab Republic.
