Khalifa Haftar

Khalifa Haftar, born on November seventh, nineteen forty-three, in Ajdabiya, Libya, is a prominent military officer and politician. He played a significant role in the Libyan Arab Republic and its successor, the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, from nineteen sixty-nine until nineteen eighty-seven. Haftar's military career began under Muammar Gaddafi, participating in the coup that brought Gaddafi to power and later fighting in the Yom Kippur War of nineteen seventy-three.

His involvement in the Chadian-Libyan War from nineteen seventy-eight to nineteen eighty-seven marked a pivotal point in his career. Promoted to Chief Officer of the Libyan military in Chad during the conflict's final phase, he was captured by Chadian forces in April nineteen eighty-seven. This event was a significant embarrassment for Gaddafi, and while imprisoned, Haftar and his fellow officers plotted to overthrow the regime. He was released in a deal with the United States government around nineteen ninety and subsequently lived in Langley, Virginia, where he gained U.S. citizenship.

Haftar returned to Libya in two thousand eleven, holding a senior position in the forces that overthrew Gaddafi during the First Libyan Civil War. By two thousand fourteen, he had become the commander of the Libyan Army, launching a campaign against the General National Congress, which led to the Second Libyan Civil War. Since early two thousand seventeen, he has been the de facto ruler of eastern Libya, governing as a military dictator under the Libyan National Army.

Despite being described as Libya's most potent warlord, with a reputation for unrivaled military experience, Haftar has faced accusations of war crimes, including the killing of prisoners of war. In November two thousand twenty-one, he announced his candidacy for the presidential election, which was later postponed. Fluent in Arabic, English, Italian, Russian, and some French, Haftar is a dual Libyan-U.S. citizen, though he is expected to renounce his U.S. citizenship before the next Libyan election.