Libya
Country Info
Who's who
Country Info
Libya
Geography and People
TopGeneral
Short name: Libya
Official name: Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya
Local short form: None
Location: Northern Africa, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Egypt and Tunisia
Area: 1,759,540 sq km
Capital: Tripoli
Independence: 24 December 1951 (from Italy)
National Holiday: Revolution Day, 1 September (1969)
Constitution: 11 December 1969; amended 2 March 1977
Population: 5,900,754 note: includes 166,510 non-nationals (July 2006 est.)
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal and compulsory
Ethnicity: Amazigh and Arab 97 per cent, Greeks, Maltese, Italians, Egyptians, Pakistanis, Turks, Indians, Tunisians
Languages: Arabic, Italian, English, all are widely understood in the major cities
Religions: Sunni Muslim 97 per cent
TopGeography
Location: Northern Africa, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Egypt and Tunisia
Geographic Co-ordinates: 25 00 N, 17 00 E
Area - comparative: slightly larger than Alaska
Land Boundaries: total: 4,348 km; border countries: Algeria 982km, Chad 1,055km, Egypt 1,115km, Niger 354km, Sudan 383km, Tunisia 459km
Coastline: 1,770km
Maritime Claims: territorial sea: 12 nm note: Gulf of Sidra closing line - 32 degrees, 30 minutes north
Climate: Mediterranean along coast; dry, extreme desert interior
Terrain: mostly barren, flat to undulating plains, plateaus, depressions
Elevation Extremes: lowest point: Sabkhat Ghuzayyil -47m; highest point: Bikku Bitti 2,267m
Natural Resources: petroleum, natural gas, gypsum
Geography – note: more than 90 per cent of the country is desert or semi-desert
Political System
TopPolitical System
Libya is officially a republic with Islam as its state religion. The government is based on the Third Universal Theory, a combination of socialism and Islam derived in part from tribal practices, which is supposed to be implemented by the Libyan people themselves. In practice, the nation is a military dictatorship.
The Leader
Though holding no formal title, Colonel Moamar Kadhafi is the de facto leader of the nation.
Leader: Colonel Moamar Kadhafi (since 1 September 1969)
Legislative
The 12-person Revolutionary Command Council, the leaders of the overthrow of the monarchy in 1969, is not elected and cannot be removed. It is empowered with appointing, removing, and accepting the resignations of the president and Council of Ministers, including the prime minister. It is also empowered to consider and promulgate laws put forward by the Council of Ministers, ratify matters related to the general budget, declare war, conclude and ratify treaties, declare martial law, and raise armies.
Executive
The Council of Ministers insures the execution of the general policy of the State in accordance with the decisions of the Revolutionary Command Council. It studies and proposes laws. Each minister is responsible for his department before the prime minister.
Prime Minister: Al-Baghdadi Ali al-Mahmudi (since 5 March 2006)
Judiciary
The aim of judicial decisions is the protection of the principles of the community and the rights, dignity, and freedom of individuals.
According to the constitution, judges are independent, being free from any authority except that of the law and their conscience. Verdicts are pronounced and executed in the name of the people. All citizens have the right to resort to the courts in accordance with the law. The Supreme Court is the highest judicial authority.
