In 1969, Muammar Gaddafi led a bloodless coup that placed him at the helm of Libya. Early in his reign, he introduced sweeping reforms aimed at improving the country’s education and healthcare systems. Education became free and compulsory, with many new schools built, especially in rural areas. Similarly, healthcare was greatly expanded with new hospitals, especially in underserved regions, along with free vaccines and health check-ups.
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Infrastructure development was also a priority. Gaddafi’s government oversaw the construction of roads, bridges, and water reservoirs, greatly improving transport and logistics. A major undertaking, the “Great Man-Made River” project, aimed to bring underground water to arid regions, transforming the country’s water supply.
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Under Gaddafi’s leadership, Libya’s oil industry flourished. The state-controlled oil company boosted production, ensuring that profits were reinvested into the national economy. This led to a sharp increase in Libya's GDP, which reached the 13th highest in the world, improving the living standards of many Libyans. Gaddafi’s popularity soared, with many seeing him as a national hero, or savior.
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However, as his power solidified, Gaddafi’s rule became increasingly autocratic. His image was omnipresent in the country, and any dissent was swiftly crushed. His regime became more focused on personal luxuries, and Gaddafi began living in extravagance, collecting gold and rare artwork, while his palace became a symbol of his wealth. His personal security grew into a private army of female bodyguards, trained both in combat and in maintaining a glamorous image.
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Gaddafi also became known for his meddling in foreign affairs, supporting insurgent groups and governments in Africa and the Middle East, often exacerbating regional conflicts. Domestically, his regime was marked by pervasive surveillance and extreme repression. Opposition was dealt with severely, with dissidents often arrested or executed.
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His personal fortune, reportedly around $200 billion, came largely from Libya’s oil wealth. Gaddafi's family monopolized key sectors of the economy, with his children filling top positions in state-owned enterprises. While the country’s oil wealth flowed largely into the hands of his family, many regions of Libya were neglected, and economic inequality grew.
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By the time Gaddafi visited Italy in 2009, his controversial policies had already made him a pariah on the world stage. His visit was marked by a provocative display of loyalty to a Libyan resistance hero, Omar Mukhtar, whose image Gaddafi wore in a photo on his chest during diplomatic meetings. Despite this, economic agreements were made, but the visit was largely seen as a political statement. Gaddafi’s leadership, once praised for its early reforms, ultimately became synonymous with corruption, oppression, and an authoritarian rule that alienated both his people and the international community.
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