The recently slain Libyan dictator, Moammar Gaddafi, ruled the Northern-African country of Libya for 41 years, until Libyan civilians decided they had enough. The longest-ruling Arab leader was killed by rebels today, just months after his government was overthrown.
Time and time again, his name was associated with war, conflict, and assassination attempts.
So what exactly did he do during his four decades of leadership?
Here is a list of 10 things you may have not known about Gadhafi
1. Revolutionary
At age 27, as a captain in the army, Gadhafi led the 1969 coup that overthrew the Libyan monarchy whileKing Idris was abroad seeking medical treatment. Banning vices like gambling and alcohol, Gadhafi proclaimed “Islamic socialism” as the new regime’s philosophy of governance. [TheDailyBeast.com]
2. Pan Africanist
Gadhafi proposed the “United States of Africa” – an idea first thought of by US Pan-Africanist Marcus Garvey — in which the continent would include “a single African military force, a single currency and a single passport for Africans to move freely around the continent.” [Rediff.com]
3. Flamboyant Leader
Gadhafi was known for his highly decorative military dresses and caps, his noodle hair was his trademark. Whenever he traveled out of the country, he was known to be more flamboyant. On foreign trips, instead of staying at five star hotels, he set up camp in a luxury tent and was accompanied by armed female bodyguards. Some of the pictures taken of his palace here, after he was ousted, shows Gadhafi’s opulence and the extravagant life that he led. He also had plastic surgery to shave years off his appearance. [Rediff.com]
4. Weapons Smuggler
In 1973, British authorities intercepted the Claudia, a ship carrying five tons of Libyan weapons destined for the Provisional IRA. Though briefly chastened, he again began funneling weapons to the IRA after a 1986 American bombing—launched from British bases—kills Gadhafi’s adopted daughter. In 1987, British and French officials stop another vessel, the Eksund, with 120 tons of weapons and ammunition. [TheDailyBeast.com]
See the rest of the list here:
