Colonel Moamer Kadhafi

Leader of Libya

(AllRefer.com, Encylopedia of World Biography, IMDb)

Moamer Kadhafi was born in 1942 as the only son to Bedouin farmer parents in a desert region near Surt. While at secondary school at Sebha, he was inspired by the speeches of Egyptian President Gamal Abdul Nasser. Kadhafi organised revolutionary student groups at the school and later at the University of Libya, from where he graduated in 1963. After graduation, he entered the Libyan Military Academy and became an army officer in 1965. He formed a secret revolutionary committee with a group of fellow officers in 1969. They led a successful coup against King Idris I. Kadhafi became the leader of the Revolutionary Command Council and led Libya as an anti-Western dictatorship based on a mix of Arab nationalism, revolutionary socialism, and Islamic orthodoxy. He closed British and American bases in 1970, confiscated the property of Libya's Italian and Jewish communities, nationalised bank and foreign petroleum assets, and fought unsuccessful wars against Egypt and Chadian-French forces. Qur'anic laws such as cutting off the hands of thieves and outlawing gambling and alcohol were instituted. Kadhafi sought to unify Libya with other Arab countries and supported international terrorist and guerrilla organisations. He has strived for improved relations with Western Europe and the United States and denounced terrorism since turning over suspects in the 1988 bombing of a Pan-Am jet in 1999. He is currently focused on strengthening the Arab Maghreb Union and opening Libya up to more foreign investment and tourism.