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Demographics of Libya include population density, ethnicity, education level, health of the populace, economic status, religious affiliations and other aspects of the Libyan population. No complete population or vital statistics registration exists in Libya.[citation needed] Of the over 6,000,000 Libyans that lived in Libya prior to the Libyan Crisis, more than a million were immigrants.[citation needed] The estimates in this article are from the 2010 Revision of the World Population Prospects which was prepared by the Population Division of the Department of Economic and Social Affairs of the United Nations Secretariat, unless otherwise indicated.[6]

The Libyan population resides in the country of Libya, a territory located on the Mediterranean coast of North Africa, to the west of and adjacent to Egypt. Most Libyans live in Tripoli, the capital of the country and first in terms of population city and Benghazi, Libya's second largest city. Ethnically, the Libyan population is largely a mixture of Arab and Berber ethnicities. According to DNA studies, 90% [citation needed] of the Arab Libyan population descended from the Arab-Berber inter-ethnic mixture[7] and the remaining 10% are Phoenicians, black Africans (especially in the south of the country) and other North African, Asian and European peoples.[citation needed]

Over the centuries, Libya has been occupied by the Phoenicians, Greeks, Italians, Arabs and Egyptians. The Phoenicians may have had the biggest impact on Libya as the capital's name, Tripoli, is Phoenician, and also many of the coastal towns and cities were established by them as trade outposts within the southern Mediterranean coast in order to facilitate the Phoenician business activities in the area. Starting in the 8th century BCE, Libya was under the rule of Carthage.[clarification needed] In the 7th century CE Libya was conquered by the Arab Muslims as part of the Arab conquest of North Africa. Centuries after that the Ottoman Empire conquered Libya in 1551 and remained in control of its territory until 1911 when the country was conquered by Italy. In the 18th century Libya was used as the base for various pirates.

In the Second World War Libya was one of the main battlegrounds of North Africa. During the war, the territory was under an Anglo-French military government until it was overrun by the Axis Powers, who, in turn, were defeated by the Allies in 1943.

In 1951, the country was granted independence by the United Nations, being governed by King Idris. In 1969, a military coup led by Muammar Gaddafi resulted in the overthrow of King Idris I. Gaddafi then established an anti-Western dictatorship. In 1970, Gaddafi ordered all British and American military bases closed.

The Libyan population has increased rapidly after 1969. They were only 523,176 humans in 1911, 2 million in 1968, and 5 million in 1969.[citation needed] That population growth was due in large part to King Idris and Gaddafi granting citizenship to many Tunisians, Egyptians and other immigrants.[citation needed] Many migrant workers came to Libya since 1969. Among the workers were construction workers and laborers from Tunisia, teachers and laborers from Egypt, teachers from Palestine, and doctors and nurses from Yugoslavia and Bulgaria. 1,000,000 workers, mainly from other neighboring African countries like Sudan, Niger, Chad and Mali, migrated to Libya in the 1990s, after changes were made to Libya's Pan-African policies.[7]

Gaddafi used money from the sale of oil to improve the living conditions of the population and to assist Palestinian guerrillas in their fight against the Israelis. In 1979, Libya fought in Uganda to assist the government of Idi Amin in the Ugandan Civil War, and in 1981, fought in the Libyan-Chadian War. Libya had occupied the Aozou Strip; however, in 1990 the International Court of Justice submitted the case and allowed the full recuperation of territory to Chad.

According to the census conducted in the 2000s, most of the people of Libya are primarily Arab or a mixture of Arab-Berber ethnicities. In addition to this, modern Libyans received large genetic input from other ethnicities like the Phoenicians, Carthaginians, Romans, Greeks, Mamelukes and Ottomans, who had either conquered, settled or conducted trade in ancient Libya before its conquest by the Islamic Empire, followed by the genetic contributions from Arabs from the Arabian Peninsula and indigenous African Berbers. Arab culture was adopted by the ancestors of modern Libyans through submission, cultural and ethnic assimilation/inter-marriage of indigenous Libyans with the incoming Arabs, as in most of northern Africa during the expansion of the Umayyad Caliphate into North Africa. This indicates that most Libyans (North Africans in the general) are more racially linked with the Mediterranean peoples of southern Europe than with the peoples of the Arabian Peninsula.[citation needed]

In September 2008, Italy and Libya signed a memorandum by which Italy would pay $5 billion over the next 20 years to compensate Libya for its dominion over Libya for its reign of 30 years.[8]

Since 2011, the country is swept by Libyan Civil War, which broke out between the Anti-Gaddafi rebels and the Pro-Gaddafi government in 2011, culminating in the death and overthrow of Gaddafi. Nevertheless, even today Libya still continues to generate problems within the area and beyond, greatly affecting its population and the migrant route to Europe.

Libya has a small population residing in a large land area. Population density is about 50 persons per km (130/sq. mi.) in the two northern regions of Tripolitania and Cyrenaica, but falls to less than one person per km (2.7/sq. mi.) elsewhere. Ninety percent of the people live in less than 10% of the area, primarily along the coast. About 90%[9] of the population is urban, mostly concentrated in the four largest cities, Tripoli, Benghazi, Misrata and Bayda. Thirty percent of the population is estimated to be under the age of 15[citation needed], but this proportion has decreased considerably during the past decades.

[citation needed]

Eight population censuses have been carried out in Libya, the first in 1931 and the most recent one in 2006.[10][11] The population sixfolded between 1931 and 2006.

During the past 60 years the demographic situation of Libya changed considerably. Since the 1950s, life expectancy increased steadily and the infant mortality rates decreased. As the fertility rates remained high until the 1980s (the number of births tripled between 195055 and 198085), population growth was very high for three decades. However, after 1985 a fast decrease in fertility was observed from over 7 children per woman in the beginning of the 1980s to less than 3 in 2005-2010.[citation needed] Because of this decrease in fertility the population growth slowed down and also the proportion of Libyans under the age of 15 decreased from 47% in 1985 to 30% in 2010.[citation needed]

Births and deaths [12]

The following demographic statistics are from the CIA World Factbook, unless otherwise indicated.[13]

Population

Age structure

Median age

Population growth rate

Birth rate

Death rate

Net migration rate

Total fertility rate

Urbanization

Sex ratio

Infant mortality rate

Life expectancy at birth

uninhabited

The native population of Libya is primarily Berber [15] or a mixture of Native Libyan ethnicities like Tuareg, Toubou and Berber, there is small minority of Berber-speaking tribal groups concentrated in northwest part of Tripolitania, Tuareg no Toubou tribes can be found in southern Libya, which are nomadic or semi-nomadic. Most of the Libyans claim descent from the Bedouin Arab tribes of the Banu Hilal and the Banu Sulaym, who invaded the Maghreb in the 11th century. There is also some Punic admixture, and a curious traditional element from the Romanized Punics such as the Roman toga can be seen in Tripoli's people and was used by Muammar Gaddafi himself.

In the west of the country, there are some Tuareg nomads, mobile across the Libyan-Algerian border. Tuaregs are also scattered over Algeria, Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso.

In the southeast, there are small populations of the Nilo-Saharan Toubou (Tibbu), although they occupy between a quarter and a third of the country and who also inhabit Niger and Chad.

Among foreign residents, the largest groups are from other African nations, including citizens of other North African nations (primarily Egyptians) as well as sub-Saharan Africans.

Libyan society is to a large extent structured along tribal lines, with more than 20 major tribal groups.[16]

The major tribal groups of Libya in 2011 were listed:[16]

Some of the ancient Berber tribes include: Adyrmachidae, Auschisae, Es'bet, Temehu, Tehnu, Rebu, Kehek, KeyKesh, Imukehek, Meshwesh, Macetae, Macatutae, Nasamones, Nitriotae, and Tautamaei.[7]

As of 2012[update] the major tribal groups of Libya, by region, were as follows:[17]

Foreign population is estimated at 3%, mostly migrant workers in the oil industry from Tunisia and Egypt, but also including small numbers of Greeks, Maltese, Italians, Pakistanis, Palestinians, Turks, Indians and people from former Yugoslavia. Due to the Libyan Civil War, most of these migrant workers have returned to their homelands or simply left the country for a different one.

However, according to news accounts in Allafrica.com, and the Libya Herald, between 1 million and 2 million Egyptians are resident in Libya and Sudanese number in the hundreds of thousands. If this is correct, the foreign population could be as high as 30% of the country, as simultaneously at least two million Libyans have fled since the NATO intervention of 2011, toppling the previous Libyan government.

Analysis of Y-chromosome have found three Y-chromosome lineages (E1b1b-M81, J-M267 and E1b1b-M78) at high frequency in Libya like in other North African populations. Some studies suggest a Paleolithic component for E-M81 and E-M78, while other studies point to a Neolithic origin. E1b1b-M78 has probably emerged in Northeastern Africa and is today widely distributed in North Africa, East Africa, and West Asia. E1b1b-M81 show high frequencies in Northwestern Africa and a high prevalence among Berbers (it is sometimes referred to as a genetic "Berber marker"). Its frequency declines towards Egypt and the Levant. On the other hand, E-M78 and E-M123 are frequent in the Levant and Egypt and decline towards Northwest Africa. Another common paternal lineage in Libya and North Africa is haplogroup J through its subtypes J1 (M267) and J2 (M172). J1 is prevalent in all North African and Levantine groups and found at high frequencies in the Arabic peninsula. It has been previously associated with the Islamic expansion. J2 is sporadically detected in North Africa and Iberia and is very frequent in the Levant/Anatolia/Iran region. Its spread in the Mediterranean is believed to have been facilitated by the maritime trading culture of the Phoenicians (1550 BC- 300 BC). E-M2 is the predominant lineage in Western Africa.

Listed here are the human Y-chromosome DNA haplogroups in Libya.[18]

Almost all Libyans are Sunni Muslim. Foreigners contribute very little Christian presence, but there are some local Christian church adherents in Eastern Libya - the Copts. A small Jewish community historically lived in Libya since antiquity (see History of the Jews in Libya), but the entire Jewish community in Libya eventually fled the country for Italy, Israel, or the United States, particularly after anti-Jewish riots in the wake of the 1967 Six-Day War between Arab countries and Israel.

Libyan cuisine is heavily influenced by Mediterranean, North African (Tunisian cuisine) and the Middle Eastern (Egyptian cuisine) traditions. Notable dishes include Shorba Arabiya, or Arabian soup, which is a thick, highly spiced soup.[19]Bazeen is a traditional Libyan food, made from a mix of barley flour and a small amount of plain flour.

Libyan origin instruments are the zokra (a bagpipe), a flute (made of bamboo), the tambourine, the oud (a fretless lute) and the darbuka (a goblet drum held sideways and played with the fingers). Bedouin poet-singers had a great influence on the musical folklore of Libya, particularly the style of huda, the camel driver's song.

The official language of Libya is Standard Arabic, while the prevalent spoken language is Libyan Arabic, Berber, is spoken by about 300 thousand Libyans. The Arabic dialects are partly spoken by immigrant workers and partly by local Libyan populations. These dialects include Egyptian Arabic, Tunisian Arabic, Sudanese Arabic, Moroccan Arabic, Ta'izzi-Adeni Arabic, South Levantine Arabic and Hassaniyya Arabic.

The Berber languages is still spoken by some of the Tuareg, a rural group in Libya's south.[20]

Indigenous minority languages in Libya:[21]

Non-Arabic languages had largely been spoken by foreign workers (who had been massively employed in Libya in various infrastructure projects prior to the 2011 civil war), and those languages with more than 10,000 speakers included Punjabi, Urdu, Mandarin, Cantonese, Korean, Sinhala, Bengal, Tamil, Tagalog, French, Italian, Ukrainian, Serbian, and English.

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NDIs programs in Libya strengthen the ability of the countrys nascent political parties, elected representatives and civil society organizations (CSOs) to participate in the transition process.

NDIs political parties program provides a range of assistance to parties from across the political spectrum. Despite being illegal for decades under Gaddafi and King Idris, there are now dozens of parties operating openly in Libya. In multiparty workshops and one-on-one consultations, NDI assists parties to develop platforms, draft bylaws that promote internal democracy, and communicate effectively with citizens. For example, NDI led a series of academies to empower women and youth members of political parties, and facilitated a series of local dialogues between party members, civil society representatives, local leaders and ordinary citizens to help both parties and citizens understand the role of parties in Libyas political transition.

When early indications from transitional leaders suggested that parties could be excluded from the GNC elections, NDI convened a diverse group of party leaders to identify common interests and collaboratively demand to participate in the electoral process. Ultimately, 80 of the 200 seats in the GNC were reserved for candidates on political party lists.

In preparation for the July 2012 GNC elections, the Institute provided technical advice to parties as they crafted issue-based platforms and messages, and developed campaign strategies. In May 2012, NDI organized training academies for women candidates for the GNC; four of the women who participated in these trainings were ultimately elected. As election day approached, NDI partnered with the United Nations to convene 35 leading political parties to negotiate and sign a 14-point code of conduct. The parties committed themselves to abide by electoral regulations and disavow violence.

To assist parties to better respond to citizens priorities, the Institute has conducted regular focus group research and public opinion polls. NDI shares the findings of these studies with political parties to assist them in developing platforms and outreach strategies.

NDI is providing assistance to newly created CSOs that encourage broader public participation in the political process. NDIs assistance is focused on election observation, political process monitoring and advocacy. The Institute works in particular with historically marginalized groups, including women, young people and ethnic minorities, who are organizing to increase their representation in Libyan politics. Responding to the deficit of public knowledge and understanding about democracy and the transition process, NDI partnered with CSOs across the country to launch Citizen Libya, a pilot civic education program to raise citizen awareness of democratic norms and the transition process. As the GNC elections approached, the Institute partnered with CSOs across the country to organize voter education activities, including a targeted initiative encouraging women to vote.

In July 2012, volunteer-driven CSOs observed and reported on voting in polling stations during the country's first national election in decades. As part of this effort, NDI offered regular training and technical support to three networks of Libyan CSOs who together deployed 3,650 activists to observe voting in all 13 of the countrys constituencies. Each network issued statements that assessed the elections as generally free and transparent, while offering recommendations for improving future elections. With guidance from NDI, a coalition of CSOs formed in mid-2013 to observe the upcoming national election for a constitution-drafting body.

Following a decision by the GNC to elect a constitution-drafting assembly (CDA) in the summer of 2013, NDI convened a group of Libyan CSOs to form a domestic election observation coalition called the Libyan Network to Promote Democracy (LNPD). NDI provided technical assistance to the LNPD as it prepared to observe the CDA election including training and deploying volunteer observers and conducting a pre-election assessment of the CDA electoral law. The LNPD deployed 560 observers during the CDA elections and supplemental polling day and later issued a statement assessing the conduct of polling.

To draw decision-makers attention to issues important to youth, the Institute also supported the creation of a nationwide network of young Libyans advocating for a role for young people in drafting the countrys constitution; the network convinced 120 candidates to sign a pledge supporting youth representation. In addition, NDI continues to organize regular trainings for its CSO partners on organizational development, strategic planning, civic education, and advocacy in advance of the expected 2015 constitutional referendum.

After the July 2012 elections, NDI began offering basic, introductory support to GNC leadership, members and staff to set precedents for improved governance. NDI has conducted a series of workshops for GNC members on their representation, executive oversight and lawmaking duties. NDI also organized a series of roundtable discussions in cities and towns across the country between GNC members and their constituents. These discussions improved public understanding of the GNCs work and provided a platform for citizens to directly communicate with their elected representatives. In partnership with the Institute for War and Peace Reporting (IWPR),NDI held a series of local radio broadcasts during which GNC members debated national and local issues and responded to citizens questions. The Institute is also assisting women GNC members to fulfill their responsibilities as elected representatives, to strengthen the womens caucus within the congress, and to partner with civil society to promote womens participation more broadly in Libyan politics.

For more information about these programs, use our contact formor contact:

Malta

Julie Hughes, Resident Country Director

Washington, D.C.

David Rolfes, Senior Advisor

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Libya | NDI

The Denmark-led operation took place Saturday and was coordinated by the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW). It was conducted in accordance with a UN resolution at the request of the Libyan Government of National Accord (GNA), according to a statement issued by National Security Council spokesman Ned Price.

Price called the 500 tons that was removed "the remains of the chemical weapons stockpile accumulated by Moammar Gadhafi's regime."

A UK naval vessel helped escort the Danish ship bearing the chemicals out of Libya, according to a statement issued by the British government.

The Royal Navy ship "will help ensure chemical weapons precursors do not fall into the hands of extremist groups, including Daesh," UK Defense Secretary Michael Fallon said, using another term for ISIS.

A recent UN-OPCW report accused ISIS of carrying out a chemical weapons attack in Syria.

The OPCW said in a statement that the US, along with nine other countries, assisted through the provision of personnel, technical expertise, equipment, financial and other resources.

A US defense official told CNN that while it was aware of and supportive of the effort, the US military was not involved in the removal operation.

Meanwhile, the Pentagon said Thursday that forces aligned to the GNA continue to make gains against ISIS in its former stronghold in the coastal city of Sirte, Libya.

US Navy Capt. Jeff Davis told reporters that ISIS only retained control over three neighborhoods and that the terror group was being driven into the sea.

"Literally, their backs are against the ocean," Davis said, adding that Libyan naval vessels were preventing ISIS from fleeing via the water.

Davis estimated that less than 200 ISIS fighters remained in the city.

The US has conducted 108 airstrikes against ISIS in Libya since operation Odyssey Lightning began August 1 in at the request of the GNA with four of the strikes taking place Wednesday, Davis said.

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Gadhafis chemical weapons materials removed from Libya - cnn.com

The flag of Libya was originally introduced in 1951, following the creation of the Kingdom of Libya. It was designed by Omar Faiek Shennib and approved by King Idris Al Senussi who comprised the UN delegation representing the regions of Cyrenaica, Fezzan and Tripolitania at UN unification discussions.

The flag fell out of use in 1969, but was subsequently adopted by the National Transitional Council and anti-Gaddafi forces and effectively reinstated as the countrys national flag in article three of the Libyan Draft Constitutional Charter for the TransitionalStage issued on 3 August 2011.[1][2]

Omar Faiek Shennib, Chief of the Royal Diwans, Vice President of the National Assembly and Minister of Defense under King Idris Al Senussi is credited in the memoirs of Adrian Pelt, UN commissioner for Libya (1949 to 1951) for the design of the original flag of Libya. This flag represented Libya from its independence in 1951 to 1969, and was adopted by the pro-democracy movement during the Libyan civil war.

An excerpt from the memoirs of Adrian Pelt states, "during deliberations of the Libyan National Constitutional Convention, a paper drawing of a proposed national flag was presented to the convention by Omar Faiek Shennib (distinguished member of the delegation from Cyrenaica). The design was composed of three colors; red, black and green, with a white Crescent and Star centered in the middle black stripe. Mr. Shennib informed the delegates that this design had met the approval of His Highness Emir of Cyrenaica, King Idris Al Senussi (later to become King of Libya). The assembly subsequently approved that design."[3]

Interviews with Ibtisam Shennib and Amal Omar Shennib, Omar Faeik Shennib's only two remaining children, both of whom still reside in Libya, have confirmed Adrian Pelt's account of the origin of the flag.[4] Ibtisam Shennib recalled the morning her father brought a draft of the flag to the breakfast table and showed it to her and her siblings, explaining the original intent behind the selection of the flag's colours and symbols. According to Omar Faiek Shennib, "red was selected for the blood sacrificed for the freedom of Libya, black to remember the dark days that Libyans lived under the occupation of the Italians (Italian Libya) and green to represent its primary wealth, agriculture, (Libya once being referred to as the 'agricultural basket' or 'breadbasket' of the Ottoman Empire) and the future prosperity of the country. The star and crescent were placed within the black central strip of the flag as a reference to the Senussi flag and the role of King Idris in leading the country to independence".[3]

The flag of Libya is described in Article 7 of the Constitution of 7 October 1951. It was officially adopted on 24 December 1951. The passage from the constitution reads:

Chapter 1, Article 7: The national flag shall have the following dimensions: Its length shall be twice its breadth, it shall be divided into three parallel coloured stripes, the uppermost being red, the centre black and the lowest green, the black stripe shall be equal in area to the two other stripes combined and shall bear in its centre a white crescent, between the two extremities of which there shall be a five-pointed white star.

Both the precise shade and legal construction is described in a booklet issued by the Ministry of Information and Guidance of the Kingdom of Libya in 1951.[5] The passage reads:

The exact particulars of the Libyan National Flag prescribed by Article 7 of the Constitution shall be as follows: The red shall be sign red, and the green permanent green. The Crescent shall be on the hoistward side of the star, and the centre of the circle of which the crescent forms a part shall be in the centre of the flag. The star shall be in the open end of the crescent and one point of the star shall point to the centre of the circle. The maximum width of the 270 crescent shall equal 16 of its outside diameter which is 14 of the width of the flag. The distance between the tips of the crescent shall equal that between the uppermost and lowermost point of the star measured along a perpendicular forming the hoistward sides of these two points. The perpendicular shall form a tangent to the outside circumference of the crescent at a point equidistant from the top and bottom of the flag.

The name "Libya" was introduced by Italian colonialism in 1934. Before 1911, the Ottoman vilayet of Tripolitania (the "kingdom of Tripoli") included much of the same territory as modern Libya.

The short-lived Tripolitanian Republic in western Libya had its own flag, which had a light blue field and a green palm tree in the center, with a white star on top of it.[6] It was unilaterally declared in 1918 and claimed sovereignty over the entire former vilayet, but never had full de facto governance.

From 1934 to 1943, Libya was an Italian colony and used the flag of the Kingdom of Italy.

The areas of Libya under British military administration (Cyrenaica 1942-1949 and Tripolitania 1943-1951) did not have their own flag and thus, used the Union flag of the United Kingdom.

During the French Administration of the former Military Territory of the South, Fezzan-Ghadames had a red flag with a crescent and star, very similar to the flag of Turkey.

During World War II, Italian Libya was occupied by France and the United Kingdom. The emirate of Cyrenaica was declared in British-occupied Cyrenaica in 1949 with the backing of the British authorities. The "emir of Cyrenaica", Idris of Libya, kept the emirate's flag (a white crescent and star on a black background) as his personal flag after he became king of Libya in 1951.

The flag of the Kingdom of Libya was adopted when Libya gained full independence in 1951. It consisted of a white star and crescent on a triband red-black-green design, with the central black band being twice the width of the outer bands. The design was based on the banner of the Senussi dynasty from Cyrenaica, which consisted of a black field and star and crescent design, and was later used as the flag of the region. The red represented the blood of the Libyan people who died for the freedom of libya, while the green represents the era, of freedom and a new start for the Libyan people.[citation needed] The crescent and star represent the main religion of Libya which is Islam.[citation needed]

Following the coup d'tat of 1969, the flag was replaced by the Pan-Arab red-white-black tricolor of the Arab Liberation Flag, first flown after the Egyptian Revolution of 1952 (which also formed the basis of the flags of Egypt, Iraq, Syria, and Yemen).

In 1972 when Libya joined the Federation of Arab Republics its flag was adopted by the country, linking it to Egypt and Syria. It featured a golden hawk (the "Hawk of Qureish"), holding a scroll with the Arabic name of the Federation.[7]

The flag of the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya was adopted on 11 November 1977 and consisted of a green field. It was the only national flag in the world with just one color and no design, insignia, or other details.[8] It was chosen by Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi to symbolize his political philosophy (after his Green Book).[9]

The green colour traditionally symbolises Islam, reflecting the historical green banners of the Fatimid Caliphate. In Libya, green was also a colour traditionally used to represent the Tripolitania region.

During the Libyan Civil War against the rule of Muammar Gaddafi, the 19511969 flag as well as various makeshift versions without the crescent and star symbol, or without the green stripe came back into use in areas held by the Libyan opposition and by protesters at several Libyan diplomatic missions abroad.[10][11][12] The National Transitional Council, formed on 27 February 2011, adopted the flag previously used in the Kingdom of Libya between 1951 and 1969 as the "emblem of the Libyan Republic".[13][14] The flag was officially defined in article three of the Libyan Draft Constitutional Charter for the TransitionalStage:

The national flag shall have the following shape and dimensions:

Its length shall be double its width, its shall be divided into three parallel coloured stripes, the uppermost being red, the centre black and lowest green, the black stripe shall be equal in area to the other two stripes together and shall bear in its centre a white crescent, between the two extremities of which there shall be a fivepointed white star.

The flag was initially used by protesters during the Libyan Civil War. On 10 March 2011, France was the first country to recognize the council as the official government of Libya, as well as the first to allow the Libyan embassy staff to raise the flag.[15] On 21 March, the flag was flown by the Permanent Mission of Libya to the United Nations and appeared on their official website,[16][17] and thereafter in late August by the Arab League[18] and by Libya's own telecommunications authority,[19] the Libya Telecom & Technology, on its own website. In the following months many other Libyan embassies replaced the green flag of Gaddafi with the tricolor flag.

This original flag of Libya is now the only flag used by the United Nations to represent Libya, according to the following UN statement: "Following the adoption by the General Assembly of resolution 66/1, the Permanent Mission of Libya to the United Nations formally notified the United Nations of a Declaration by the National Transitional Council of 3 August 2011 changing the official name of the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya to "Libya" as well as a decision to change Libya's national flag to the original."[20] All Libyan diplomatic posts, such as embassies and consulates, use the original flag of Libya.

British Military Administration (19421951)

Kingdom of Libya (19511969)

Libyan Arab Republic (19691972)

Federation of Arab Republics (19721977)

Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya (19772011)

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Flag of Libya - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Tripoli (Arabic: , arbulus; Berber: rables) is the capital city and the largest city of Libya. Tripoli, with its metropolitan area, has a population of about 1.1 million people.[1] The city is located in the northwestern part of Libya on the edge of the desert, on a point of rocky land projecting into the Mediterranean and forming a bay. Tripoli includes the Port of Tripoli and the country's largest commercial and manufacturing centre. It is also the site of the University of Tripoli. The vast Bab al-Azizia barracks, which includes the former family estate of Muammar Gaddafi, is also located in the city. Colonel Gaddafi largely ruled the country from his residence in this barracks.

Tripoli was founded in the 7th century BC by the Phoenicians, who named it Oea.[2] Due to the city's long history, there are many sites of archaeological significance in Tripoli. "Tripoli" may also refer to the shabiyah (top-level administrative division in the current Libyan system), the Tripoli District.

Tripoli is also known as Tripoli-of-the-West (Arabic: arbulus al-Gharb), to distinguish it from its Phoenician sister city Tripoli, Lebanon known in Arabic as arbulus al-Sham ( ) meaning "Levantine Tripoli". It is affectionately called The Mermaid of the Mediterranean (Arabic: arsat el-bar; lit: "bride of the sea"), describing its turquoise waters and its whitewashed buildings. Tripoli English pronunciation: [3] is a Greek name that means "Three Cities", introduced in Western European languages through the Italian Tripoli. In Arabic: it is called arbulus (pronunciation(helpinfo), Libyan Arabic: rbls pronunciation(helpinfo), Berber: rables, from AncientGreek: Trpolis). Compare Sanskrit, "tri" meaning the number 3, and "pura" meaning a fortress, castle, city or town. Hence, in Sanskrit "Tripura" also means "Three Cities".[4]

The city was founded in the 7th century BC, by the Phoenicians, who gave it the Libyco-Berber name Oea (or Wy't),[5] The Phoenicians were probably attracted to the site by its natural harbour, flanked on the western shore by the small, easily defensible peninsula, on which they established their colony. The city then passed into the hands of the rulers of Cyrenaica (a Greek colony on the North African shore, east of Tripoli, halfway to Egypt), although the Carthaginians later wrested it from the Greeks.

By the later half of the 2nd century BC it belonged to the Romans, who included it in their province of Africa, and gave it the name of "Regio Syrtica". Around the beginning of the 3rd century AD, it became known as the Regio Tripolitana, meaning "region of the three cities", namely Oea (i.e., modern Tripoli), Sabratha and Leptis Magna. It was probably raised to the rank of a separate province by Septimius Severus, who was a native of Leptis Magna.

In spite of centuries of Roman habitation, the only visible Roman remains, apart from scattered columns and capitals (usually integrated in later buildings), is the Arch of Marcus Aurelius from the 2nd century AD. The fact that Tripoli has been continuously inhabited, unlike e.g., Sabratha and Leptis Magna, has meant that the inhabitants have either quarried material from older buildings (destroying them in the process), or built on top of them, burying them beneath the streets, where they remain largely unexcavated.

There is evidence to suggest that the Tripolitania region was in some economic decline during the 5th and 6th centuries, in part due to the political unrest spreading across the Mediterranean world in the wake of the collapse of the Western Roman empire, as well as pressure from the invading Vandals.

According to al-Baladhuri, Tripoli was, unlike Western North Africa, taken by the Muslims very early after Alexandria, in the 22nd year of the Hijra, that is between 30 November 642 and 18 November 643 AD. Following the conquest, Tripoli was ruled by dynasties based in Cairo, Egypt (first the Fatimids, and later the Mamluks) and Kairouan in ifriqiya (the Arab Fihrids, Muhallabids and Aghlabid dynasties). For some time it was a part of the Berber Almohad empire and of the Hafsids kingdom. It was part of the Ottoman Empire between the 16th and 19th centuries.

In 1510, it was taken by Don Pedro Navarro, Count of Oliveto for Spain, and, in 1523, it was assigned to the Knights of St. John, who had lately been expelled by the Ottoman Turks from their stronghold on the island of Rhodes. Finding themselves in very hostile territory, the Knights enhanced the city's walls and other defenses. Though built on top of a number of older buildings (possibly including a Roman public bath), much of the earliest defensive structures of the Tripoli castle (or "Assaraya al-Hamra", i.e., the "Red Castle") are attributed to the Knights of St John.

Having previously combated piracy from their base on Rhodes, the reason that the Knights were given charge of the city was to prevent it from relapsing into the nest[citation needed] of Barbary pirates as it had been prior to the Spanish occupation. The disruption the pirates caused to the Christian shipping lanes in the Mediterranean had been one of the main incentives for the Spanish conquest of the city.

The knights kept the city with some trouble until 1551, when they were compelled to surrender to the Ottomans, led by Muslim Turk Turgut Reis.[6] Turgut Reis served as pasha of Tripoli, during his rule he adorned and built up the city, making it one of the most impressive cities along the North African Coast.[7] Turgut was also buried in Tripoli after his death in 1565. His body was taken from Malta, where he had fallen during the Ottoman siege of the island, to a tomb in the mosque he had established close to his palace in Tripoli. The palace has since disappeared (supposedly it was situated between the so-called "Ottoman prison" and the arch of Marcus Aurelius), but the mosque, along with his tomb, still stands, close to the Bab Al-Bahr gate.

After the capture by the Ottoman Turks, Tripoli once again became a base of operation for Barbary pirates. One of several Western attempts to dislodge them again was a Royal Navy attack under John Narborough in 1675, of which a vivid eye-witness account has survived.[8]

Effective Ottoman rule during this period (15511711) was often hampered by the local Janissary corps. Intended to function as enforcers of local administration, the captain of the Janissaries and his cronies were often the de facto rulers.

In 1711, Ahmed Karamanli, a Janissary officer of Turkish origin, killed the Ottoman governor, the "Pasha", and established himself as ruler of the Tripolitania region. By 1714, he had asserted a sort of semi-independence from the Ottoman Sultan, heralding in the Karamanli dynasty. The Pashas of Tripoli were expected to pay a regular tributary tax to the Sultan, but were in all other aspects rulers of an independent kingdom. This order of things continued under the rule of his descendants, accompanied by the brazen piracy and blackmailing until 1835, when the Ottoman Empire took advantage of an internal struggle and re-established its authority.

The Ottoman province (vilayet) of Tripoli (including the dependent sanjak of Cyrenaica) lay along the southern shore of the Mediterranean between Tunisia in the west and Egypt in the east. Besides the city itself, the area included Cyrenaica (the Barca plateau), the chain of oases in the Aujila depression, Fezzan and the oases of Ghadames and Ghat, separated by sandy and stony wastelands.

In the early part of the 19th century, the regency at Tripoli, owing to its piratical practices, was twice involved in war with the United States. In May 1801, the pasha demanded an increase in the tribute ($83,000) which the US government had been paying since 1796 for the protection of their commerce from piracy under the 1796 Treaty with Tripoli. The demand was refused, and a naval force was sent from the United States to blockade Tripoli.

The First Barbary War dragged on for four years. In 1803, Tripolitan fighters captured the US frigate Philadelphia and took its commander, Captain William Bainbridge, and the entire crew as prisoners. This was after the Philadelphia was run aground when the captain tried to navigate too close to the port of Tripoli. After several hours aground and Tripolitan gun boats firing upon the Philadelphia, though none ever struck the Philadelphia, Captain Bainbridge made the decision to surrender. The Philadelphia was later turned against the Americans and anchored in Tripoli Harbor as a gun battery while her officers and crew were held prisoners in Tripoli. The following year, US Navy Lieutenant Stephen Decatur led a successful nighttime raid to retake and burn the ship rather than see it in enemy hands. Decatur's men set fire to the Philadelphia and escaped.

A notable incident in the war was the expedition undertaken by William Eaton with the object of replacing the pasha with an elder brother living in exile, who had promised to accede to all the wishes of the United States. Eaton, at the head of a mixed force of US Marines, Greek, Arab and Turkish Mercenaries numbering approximately 500, marched across the desert from Alexandria, Egypt and with the aid of American ships, succeeded in capturing Derna. Soon afterward, on 3 June 1805, peace was concluded. The pasha ended his demands and received $60,000 as ransom for the Philadelphia prisoners under the 1805 Treaty with Tripoli.

In 1815, in consequence of further outrages and due to the humiliation of the earlier defeat, Captains Bainbridge and Stephen Decatur, at the head of an American squadron, again visited Tripoli and forced the pasha to comply with the demands of the United States. See Second Barbary War.

In 1835, the Ottomans took advantage of a local civil war to reassert their direct authority. After that date, Tripoli was under the direct control of the Sublime Porte. Rebellions in 1842 and 1844 were unsuccessful. After the French occupation of Tunisia (1881), the Ottomans increased their garrison in Tripoli considerably.[clarification needed]

Italy had long claimed that Tripoli fell within its zone of influence and that Italy had the right to preserve order within the state.[9] Under the pretext of protecting its own citizens living in Tripoli from the Ottoman government, it declared war against the Ottomans on 29 September 1911, and announced its intention of annexing Tripoli. On 1 October 1911, a naval battle was fought at Prevesa, Greece, and three Ottoman vessels were destroyed.

By the Treaty of Lausanne, Italian sovereignty was acknowledged by the Ottomans, although the caliph was permitted to exercise religious authority. Italy officially granted autonomy after the war, but gradually occupied the region. Originally administered as part of a single colony, Tripoli and its surrounding province were a separate colony from 26 June 1927 to 3 December 1934, when all Italian possessions in North Africa were merged into one colony. By 1938, Tripoli [10] had 108,240 inhabitants, including 39,096 Italians.[11]

Tripoli underwent a huge architectural and urbanistic improvement under Italian rule:[12] the first thing the Italians did was to create in the early 1920s a sewage system (that until then lacked) and a modern hospital.

In the coast of the province was built in 19371938 a section of the Litoranea Balbia, a road that went from Tripoli and Tunisia's frontier to the border of Egypt. The car tag for the Italian province of Tripoli was "TL".[13]

Furthermore, the Italians in order to promote Tripoli's economy founded in 1927 the Tripoli International Fair, which is considered[by whom?] to be the oldest trade fair in Africa.[14] The so-called Fiera internazionale di Tripoli was one of the main international "Fairs" in the colonial world in the 1930s, and was internationally promoted together with the Tripoli Grand Prix as a showcase of Italian Libya.[15]

The Italians created the Tripoli Grand Prix, an international motor racing event first held in 1925 on a racing circuit outside Tripoli (it lasted until 1940).[16] The first airport in Libya, the Mellaha Air Base was built by the Italian Air Force in 1923 near the Tripoli racing circuit (actually is called Mitiga International Airport).

Tripoli even had a railway station with some small railway connections to nearby cities, when in August 1941 the Italians started to build a new 1,040-kilometre (646-mile) railway (with a 1,435mm (56.5in) gauge, like the one used in Egypt and Tunisia) between Tripoli and Benghazi. But the war (with the defeat of the Italian Army) stopped the construction the next year.

Tripoli was controlled by Italy until 1943 when the provinces of Tripolitania and Cyrenaica were captured by Allied forces. The city fell to troops of the British Eighth Army on 23 January 1943. Tripoli was then governed by the British until independence in 1951. Under the terms of the 1947 peace treaty with the Allies, Italy relinquished all claims to Libya.[17]

On 15 April 1986, U.S. President Ronald Reagan ordered major bombing raids, dubbed Operation El Dorado Canyon, against Tripoli and Benghazi, killing 45 Libyan military and government personnel as well as 15 civilians. This strike followed US interception of telex messages from Libya's East Berlin embassy suggesting the involvement of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi in a bomb explosion on 5 April in West Berlin's La Belle discotheque, a nightclub frequented by US servicemen. Among the alleged fatalities of the 15 April retaliatory attack by the United States was Gaddafi's adopted daughter, Hannah.

United Nations sanctions against Libya were lifted in 2003, which increased traffic through the Port of Tripoli and had a positive impact on the city's economy.

In February and March 2011, Tripoli witnessed intense anti-government protests and violent government responses resulting in hundreds killed and wounded. The city's Green Square was the scene of some of the protests. The anti-Gaddafi protests were eventually crushed, and Tripoli was the site of pro-Gaddafi rallies.[18]

The city defenses loyal to Gaddafi included the military headquarters at Bab al-Aziziyah (where Gaddafi's main residence was located) and the Mitiga International Airport. At the latter, on 13 March, Ali Atiyya, a colonel of the Libyan Air Force, defected and joined the revolution.[19]

In late February, rebel forces took control of Zawiya, a city approximately 50km (31mi) to the west of Tripoli, thus increasing the threat to pro-Gaddafi forces in the capital. During the subsequent battle of Zawiya, loyalist forces besieged the city and eventually recaptured it by 10 March.[citation needed]

As the 2011 military intervention in Libya commenced on 19 March to enforce a U.N. no-fly zone over the country, the city once again came under air attack. It was the second time that Tripoli was bombed since the 1986 U.S. airstrikes, and the second time since the 1986 airstrike that bombed Bab al-Azizia, Gaddafi's heavily fortified compound.

In July and August, Libyan online revolutionary communities posted tweets and updates on attacks by rebel fighters on pro-government vehicles and checkpoints. In one such attack, Saif al-Islam Gaddafi and Abdullah Senussi were targets.[citation needed] The government, however, denied revolutionary activity inside the capital.

Several months after the initial uprising, rebel forces in the Nafusa Mountains advanced towards the coast, retaking Zawiya and reaching Tripoli on 21 August. On 21 August, the symbolic Green Square, immediately renamed Martyrs' Square by the rebels, was taken under rebel control and pro-Gaddafi posters were torn down and burned.[citation needed]

During a radio address on 1 September, Gaddafi declared that the capital of the Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya had been moved from Tripoli to Sirte, after rebels had taken control of Tripoli.

In August and September 2014 Islamist armed groups extended their control of central Tripoli. The Council of Deputies parliament set up operations on a Greek car ferry in Tobruk. A rival New General National Congress parliament continued to operate in Tripoli.[20][21]

Tripoli and its surrounding suburbs all lie within the Tripoli sha'biyah (district). In accordance with Libya's former Jamahiriya political system, Tripoli comprises Local People's Congresses where, in theory, the city's population discuss different matters and elect their own people's committee; at present[when?] there are 29 Local People's Congresses. In reality, the former revolutionary committees severely limited the democratic process by closely supervising committee and congress elections at the branch and district levels of governments, Tripoli being no exception.

Tripoli is sometimes referred to as "the de jure capital of Libya" because none of the country's ministries are actually located in the capital. Even the former National General People's Congress was held annually in the city of Sirte rather than in Tripoli. As part of a radical decentralization programme undertaken by Gaddafi in September 1988, all General People's Committee secretariats (ministries), except those responsible for foreign liaison (foreign policy and international relations) and information, were moved outside Tripoli. According to diplomatic sources, the former Secretariat for Economy and Trade was moved to Benghazi; the Secretariat for Health to Kufra; and the remainder, excepting one, to Sirte, Muammar Gaddafi's birthplace. In early 1993 it was announced that the Secretariat for Foreign Liaison and International Co-operation was to be moved to Ra's Lanuf. In October 2011, Libya fell to The National Transitional Council (N.T.C.), which took full control, abolishing the Gaddafi-era system of national and local government.

Tripoli lies at the western extremity of Libya close to the Tunisian border, on the continent of Africa. Over a thousand kilometres separates Tripoli from Libya's second largest city, Benghazi. Coastal oases alternate with sandy areas and lagoons along the shores of Tripolitania for more than 300km (190mi).

Until 2007, the "Sha'biyah" included the city, its suburbs and their immediate surroundings. In older administrative systems and throughout history, there existed a province ("muhafazah"), state ("wilayah") or city-state with a much larger area (though not constant boundaries), which is sometimes mistakenly referred to as Tripoli but more appropriately should be called Tripolitania.

As a District, Tripoli borders the following districts:

Tripoli has a hot semi-arid climate (Kppen climate classification BSh)[22] with long, hot and extremely dry summers with relatively wet and warm winters. Its summers are hot with temperatures that often exceed 38C (100F); average July temperatures are between 22 and 33C (72 and 91F). In December, temperatures have reached as low as 0C (32F), but the average remains at between 9 and 18C (48 and 64F). The average annual rainfall is less than 400 millimetres (16 inches). Snowfall has occurred in past years.[23]

The rainfall can be very erratic. Epic floods in 1945 left Tripoli underwater for several days, but two years later an unprecedented drought caused the loss of thousands of head of cattle. Deficiency in rainfall is no doubt reflected in an absence of permanent rivers or streams in the city as is indeed true throughout the entire country. The allocation of limited water is considered of sufficient importance to warrant the existence of the Secretariat of Dams and Water Resources, and damaging a source of water can be penalized by a heavy fine or imprisonment.[citation needed]

The Great Manmade River, a network of pipelines that transport water from the desert to the coastal cities, supplies Tripoli with its water.[24] The grand scheme was initiated by Gaddafi in 1982 and has had a positive impact on the city's inhabitants.[citation needed]

Tripoli is dotted with public spaces, but none fit under the category of large city parks. Martyrs' Square, located near the waterfront is scattered with palm trees, the most abundant plant used for landscaping in the city. The Tripoli Zoo, located south of the city center, is a large reserve of plants, trees and open green spaces and was the country's biggest zoo.[citation needed] It has, however, been closed since 2009.

Tripoli is one of the main hubs of Libya's economy along with Misrata. It is the leading centre of banking, finance and communication in the country and is one of the leading commercial and manufacturing cities in Libya. Many of the country's largest corporations locate their headquarters and home offices in Tripoli as well as the majority of international companies.[citation needed]

Major manufactured goods include processed food, textiles, construction materials, clothing and tobacco products. Since the lifting of sanctions against Libya in 1999 and again in 2003, Tripoli has seen a rise in foreign investment as well as an increase in tourism. Increased traffic has also been recorded in the city's port as well as Libya's main international airport, Tripoli International.[citation needed]

The city is home to the Tripoli International Fair, an international industrial, agricultural and commercial event located on Omar Muktar Avenue. One of the active members of the Global Association of the Exhibition Industry (UFI), located in the French capital Paris, the international fair is organized annually and takes place from 212 April. Participation averages around 30 countries as well as more than 2000 companies and organizations.[citation needed]

Since the rise in tourism and influx of foreign visitors, there has been an increased demand for hotels in the city. To cater for these increased demands, the Corinthia Bab Africa Hotel located in the central business district was constructed in 2003 and is the largest hotel in Libya. Other high end hotels in Tripoli include the Al Waddan Intercontinental and the Tripoli Radisson Blu Hotel as well as others.[27]

There is a project under construction which will finish by 2015. It is a part of the Tripoli business center and it will have towers and hotels, a marketing center, restaurants and above ground and underground parking. The cost is planned to be more than 3.0 billion Libyan dinars (US$2.8 billion)

Companies with head offices in Tripoli include Afriqiyah Airways and Libyan Airlines.[28][29]Buraq Air has its head office on the grounds of Mitiga International Airport.[30]

The city's old town, the Medina, is still unspoiled by mass-tourism, though it was increasingly exposed to more and more visitors from abroad, following the lifting of the UN embargo in 2003. However, the walled Medina retains much of its serene old-world ambiance. The Red Castle Museum (Assaraya al-Hamra), a vast palace complex with numerous courtyards, dominates the city skyline and is located on the outskirts of the Medina. There are some classical statues and fountains from the Ottoman period scattered around the castle. An Ottoman saray now houses the Traveler's Library.

Three gates provided access to the old town: Bab Zanata in the west, Bab Hawara in the southeast and Bab Al-Bahr in the north wall. The city walls are still standing and can be climbed for good views of the city. The bazaar is also known for its traditional ware; fine jewellery and clothes can be found in the local markets.

There are a number of buildings that were constructed by the Italian colonial rulers and later demolished under Gaddafi. They included the Royal Miramare Theatre, next to the Red Castle, and Tripoli Railway Central Station. Tripoli Cathedral, constructed by the Italian colonial authorities during the 1920s, was converted into a mosque in the early 1970s. The building was extensively remodelled at this time.

The largest university in Tripoli, the University of Tripoli, is a public university providing free education to the city's inhabitants. Private universities and colleges have also begun to crop up in the last few years.

International schools:

Football is the most popular sport in the Libyan capital. Tripoli is home of the most prominent football clubs in Libya including Al Madina, Al Ahly Tripoli and Al Ittihad Tripoli. Other sports clubs based in Tripoli include Al Wahda Tripoli and Addahra.

The city also played host to the Italian Super Cup in 2002. The Africa Cup of Nations were to be played in Libya,three of the venues for Tripoli,but it was cancelled due to the ongoing conflict of the Second Libyan Civil War.

Tripoli is twinned with:

Tripoli International Airport is the largest airport in Tripoli and Libya. Tripoli also has another airport, the smaller Mitiga International Airport.

Tripoli is the interim destination of a railway from Sirte under construction in 2007.[31]

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