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Libya-ORIGINS OF THE MODERN ARMED FORCES

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The roots of the contemporary Libyan army can be traced to the Libyan Arab Force (popularly known as the Sanusi Army) of World War II. Shortly after Italy entered the war, a number of Libyan leaders living in exile in Egypt called on their compatriots to organize themselves into military units and join the British in the war against the Axis powers. Five battalions, which were initially designed for guerrilla warfare in the Jabal al Akhdar region of Cyrenaica, were established under British command. Because the high mobility of the desert campaigns required a considerable degree of technical and mechanical expertise, the Libyan forces were used primarily as auxiliaries, guarding military installations and prisoners. One battalion, however, participated in the fighting at Tobruk.

After Britain succeeded in occupying the Libyan territories, the need for the British-trained and -equipped Sanusi troops appeared to be over. The Sanusi Army was reluctant to disband, however, and the majority of its members arranged to be transferred to the local police force in Cyrenaica under the British military administration. When Libya gained its independence in 1951, veterans of the original Sanusi Army formed the nucleus of the Royal Libyan Army.

Until the discovery and exploitation of oil, beginning in the late 1950s, Libya was one of the poorest countries in the world. Limited available natural resources and a small population provided little basis for viable defensive strength, and the new state was militarily insignificant during its early years. King Idris deliberately divided the security forces into a regular army and a variety of armed police forces. The primary mission of the armed police was to counterbalance dissidents within the faction-torn armed forces and thus preclude a coup against the monarchy.

With substantial British assistance, the army was slowly enlarged, and by September 1969 its strength was estimated at roughly 6,500--about half the size of the armed police. The police forces, composed mainly of conservative tribal elements that the king considered more reliable than the regular army, were extremely diverse. They ranged from several lightly armed territorial forces to the mobile National Security Force, which was equipped with helicopters and armored cars. Units of the prestigious Cyrenaican Defense Force, assisted and advised by British military specialists, were garrisoned at several places in Cyrenaica.

The small naval and air components were not developed until later. The air force was formed in August 1963, and the navy was established in November 1962. Consisting initially of only a few aircraft and two pilots, by 1967 the air force had increased to about 250 American-trained personnel and a few jet trainers and piston-engine transports. After the June 1967 War, demand for more sophisticated aircraft resulted in the purchase of ten American F-5 fighter-bombers in 1968 and 1969. Throughout this early period, the British were influential in the development of the Libyan navy, which, however, grew extremely slowly and even by the time of Qadhafi's coup in 1969 consisted of just over 200 men.

Partly because of the limited resources in trained personnel locally and partly because the monarchy was suspicious of the professional military, the idea of purchasing a sophisticated air defense missile system and training a few specialists in its operation gained popularity among the king's nonmilitary advisers. In 1968 the government entered into a contract with Britain for the installation of an air defense system to be delivered over five years at a cost of almost US$300 million. Under the contract, the British agreed to supply a complex antiaircraft missile system and radar detection and control equipment and to train Libyans to operate them. The high priority assigned to this project and the unprecedented expense involved were reflected in an accompanying decision to postpone the introduction of the monarchy's second five-year development plan until April 1969. Idris, however was unwilling to disrupt the balance between the army and the police by providing the military element with tanks, artillery, and armored personnel carriers, recognizing that such equipment could be employed against his regime as easily as against a hostile external force. Ironically, when Qadhafi and his Free Officers Movement mounted their overthrow of the monarchy, the ostensibly reliable police did not interfere.

Assuming power after the 1969 coup, the new Qadhafi regime integrated major elements of the police into the army. Although he cancelled the British air defense project, Qadhafi began to build up the country's military strength through large equipment purchases from foreign suppliers. In 1970 the government contracted to buy 110 Mirage jet fighters from France. Thereafter, the air force grew rapidly and became an important component of the armed forces. Similar purchases provided tanks and artillery for the army and vessels for the navy.

Within a year after the coup, the size of the military establishment was estimated at about 22,000 men--over three times the figure immediately before the coup. Although this increase followed a major recruitment effort, it was primarily the result of the merger of the regular army with most of the former National Security Force and the Cyrenaican Defense Force, which between them had comprised about 14,000 troops.

In 1971 the government announced the creation of the Popular Resistance Force, a militia that was under the operational control of the chief of staff of the Libyan armed forces. Initially, the primary mission of the force was to guard government buildings, oil installations, and other important facilities in the event of war or internal disorders.

Less than a year after the 1969 coup, Qadhafi and his fellow Free Officers assumed control of British and United States bases in Libya and began to sever military supply links with those countries. France, politically less objectionable to Qadhafi, became the leading source of arms but, in 1974, Libya reached agreement with the Soviet Union for the purchase of equipment on a scale well in excess of France's production capacity, even if France had not been deterred by Qadhafi's increasingly radical and irrational behavior. Tremendous quantities of modern Soviet armaments were delivered beginning in 1975, and the flow was continuing in 1987. In spite of the fact that thousands of advisers from the Soviet Union and other communist countries helped with manning, maintenance, and training in the use of the new equipment, the sheer quantity overwhelmed the ability of the Libyan armed forces to introduce it into operational units.

Prodigious importation of new weapons systems was accompanied by a rapid buildup of manpower. When voluntary enlistments proved inadequate, the government invoked a conscription law calling for three to four years service for all males between the ages of seventeen and thirty-five. Consequently, the armed forces more than doubled in strength between 1974, when the first arms agreement with the Soviet Union was concluded, and 1986, when the total manpower of the three services was estimated at over 90,000. In addition to creating the most highly mechanized army among the Arab nations, by the late 1980s Qadhafi had procured a fleet of submarines, corvettes, and missile boats that constituted a significant new naval force in the Mediterranean. The Soviet Union had also supplied Libya with modern fighter aircraft, a bomber and transport force, and a sophisticated air defense system.

Data as of 1987

Background		The Italians supplanted the Ottoman Turks in the area around Tripoli in 1911 and did not relinquish their hold until 1943 when defeated in World War II. Libya then passed to UN administration and achieved independence in 1951. Following a 1969 military coup, Col. Muammar Abu Minyar al-QADHAFI began to espouse his own political system, the Third Universal Theory. The system is a combination of socialism and Islam derived in part from tribal practices and is supposed to be implemented by the Libyan people themselves in a unique form of "direct democracy." QADHAFI has always seen himself as a revolutionary and visionary leader. He used oil funds during the 1970s and 1980s to promote his ideology outside Libya, supporting subversives and terrorists abroad to hasten the end of Marxism and capitalism. In addition, beginning in 1973, he engaged in military operations in northern Chad's Aozou Strip - to gain access to minerals and to use as a base of influence in Chadian politics - but was forced to retreat in 1987. UN sanctions in 1992 isolated QADHAFI politically following the downing of Pan AM Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland. During the 1990s, QADHAFI began to rebuild his relationships with Europe. UN sanctions were suspended in April 1999 and finally lifted in September 2003 after Libya accepted responsibility for the Lockerbie bombing. In December 2003, Libya announced that it had agreed to reveal and end its programs to develop weapons of mass destruction and to renounce terrorism. QADHAFI has made significant strides in normalizing relations with Western nations since then. He has received various Western European leaders as well as many working-level and commercial delegations, and made his first trip to Western Europe in 15 years when he traveled to Brussels in April 2004. The US rescinded Libya's designation as a state sponsor of terrorism in June 2006. In January 2008, Libya assumed a nonpermanent seat on the UN Security Council for the 2008-09 term. In August 2008, the US and Libya signed a bilateral comprehensive claims settlement agreement to compensate claimants in both countries who allege injury or death at the hands of the other country, including the Lockerbie bombing, the LaBelle disco bombing, and the UTA 772 bombing. In October 2008, the US Government received $1.5 billion pursuant to the agreement to distribute to US national claimants, and as a result effectively normalized its bilateral relationship with Libya. The two countries then exchanged ambassadors for the first time since 1973 in January 2009. QADHAFI in February 2009 took over as chairman of the African Union for the 2009-10 term; in September 2009, a Libyan took over the year-long presidency of UN General Assembly.
Location		Northern Africa, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Egypt and Tunisia
Area(sq km)		total: 1,759,540 sq km land: 1,759,540 sq km water: 0 sq km
Geographic coordinates		25 00 N, 17 00 E
Land boundaries(km)		total: 4,348 km border countries: Algeria 982 km, Chad 1,055 km, Egypt 1,115 km, Niger 354 km, Sudan 383 km, Tunisia 459 km
Coastline(km)		1,770 km
Climate		Mediterranean along coast; dry, extreme desert interior
Elevation extremes(m)		lowest point: Sabkhat Ghuzayyil -47 m highest point: Bikku Bitti 2,267 m
Natural resources		petroleum, natural gas, gypsum
Land use(%)		arable land: 1.03% permanent crops: 0.19% other: 98.78% (2005)
Irrigated land(sq km)		4,700 sq km (2003)
Total renewable water resources(cu km)		0.6 cu km (1997)
Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural)		total: 4.27 cu km/yr (14%/3%/83%) per capita: 730 cu m/yr (2000)
Natural hazards		hot, dry, dust-laden ghibli is a southern wind lasting one to four days in spring and fall; dust storms, sandstorms
Environment - current issues		desertification; limited natural fresh water resources; the Great Manmade River Project, the largest water development scheme in the world, is being built to bring water from large aquifers under the Sahara to coastal cities
Environment - international agreements		party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea
Geography - note		more than 90% of the country is desert or semidesert
Population		6,310,434 note: includes 166,510 non-nationals (July 2009 est.)
Age structure(%)		0-14 years: 33% (male 1,064,866/female 1,019,790) 15-64 years: 62.7% (male 2,033,478/female 1,920,755) 65 years and over: 4.3% (male 133,092/female 138,453) (2009 est.)
Median age(years)		total: 23.9 years male: 24 years female: 23.8 years (2009 est.)
Population growth rate(%)		2.17% (2009 est.)
Birth rate(births/1,000 population)		25.15 births/1,000 population (2009 est.)
Death rate(deaths/1,000 population)		3.45 deaths/1,000 population (July 2009 est.)
Net migration rate(migrant(s)/1,000 population)		NA (2009 est.)
Urbanization(%)		urban population: 78% of total population (2008) rate of urbanization: 2.2% annual rate of change (2005-10 est.)
Sex ratio(male(s)/female)		at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.96 male(s)/female total population: 1.05 male(s)/female (2009 est.)
Infant mortality rate(deaths/1,000 live births)		total: 21.05 deaths/1,000 live births male: 23.21 deaths/1,000 live births female: 18.78 deaths/1,000 live births (2009 est.)
Life expectancy at birth(years)		total population: 77.26 years male: 74.98 years female: 79.65 years (2009 est.)
Total fertility rate(children born/woman)		3.08 children born/woman (2009 est.)
Nationality		noun: Libyan(s) adjective: Libyan
Ethnic groups(%)		Berber and Arab 97%, other 3% (includes Greeks, Maltese, Italians, Egyptians, Pakistanis, Turks, Indians, and Tunisians)
Religions(%)		Sunni Muslim 97%, other 3%
Languages(%)		Arabic, Italian, English, all are widely understood in the major cities
Country name		conventional long form: Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya conventional short form: Libya local long form: Al Jamahiriyah al Arabiyah al Libiyah ash Shabiyah al Ishtirakiyah al Uthma local short form: none
Government type		Jamahiriya (a state of the masses) in theory, governed by the populace through local councils; in practice, an authoritarian state
Capital		name: Tripoli (Tarabulus) geographic coordinates: 32 53 N, 13 10 E time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Administrative divisions		25 municipalities (baladiyat, singular - baladiyah); Ajdabiya, Al 'Aziziyah, Al Fatih, Al Jabal al Akhdar, Al Jufrah, Al Khums, Al Kufrah, An Nuqat al Khams, Ash Shati', Awbari, Az Zawiyah, Banghazi, Darnah, Ghadamis, Gharyan, Misratah, Murzuq, Sabha, Sawfajjin, Surt, Tarabulus, Tarhunah, Tubruq, Yafran, Zlitan; note - the 25 municipalities may have been replaced by 13 regions
Constitution		none; note - following the September 1969 military overthrow of the Libyan government, the Revolutionary Command Council replaced the existing constitution with the Constitutional Proclamation in December 1969; in March 1977, Libya adopted the Declaration of the Establishment of the People's Authority
Legal system		based on Italian and French civil law systems and Islamic law; separate religious courts; no constitutional provision for judicial review of legislative acts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage		18 years of age; universal and technically compulsory
Executive branch		chief of state: Revolutionary Leader Col. Muammar Abu Minyar al-QADHAFI (since 1 September 1969); note - holds no official title, but is de facto chief of state head of government: Secretary of the General People's Committee (Prime Minister) al-Baghdadi Ali al-MAHMUDI (since 5 March 2006) cabinet: General People's Committee established by the General People's Congress elections: national elections are indirect through a hierarchy of people's committees; head of government elected by the General People's Congress; election last held March 2009 (next to be held NA) election results: NA
Legislative branch		unicameral General People's Congress (760 seats; members elected indirectly through a hierarchy of people's committees)
Judicial branch		Supreme Court
Political pressure groups and leaders		other: Arab nationalist movements; anti-QADHAFI Libyan exile Movement; Islamic elements
International organization participation		ABEDA, AfDB, AFESD, AMF, AMU, AU, CAEU, COMESA, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, LAS, MIGA, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, OPCW, OPEC, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer)
Flag description		plain green; green is the traditional color of Islam (the state religion)
Economy - overview		The Libyan economy depends primarily upon revenues from the oil sector, which contribute about 95% of export earnings, about one-quarter of GDP, and 60% of public sector wages. The expected weakness in world hydrocarbon prices throughout 2009 will reduce Libyan government tax income and constrain Libyan economic growth in 2009. Substantial revenues from the energy sector coupled with a small population give Libya one of the highest per capita GDPs in Africa, but little of this income flows down to the lower orders of society. Libyan officials in the past five years have made progress on economic reforms as part of a broader campaign to reintegrate the country into the international fold. This effort picked up steam after UN sanctions were lifted in September 2003 and as Libya announced in December 2003 that it would abandon programs to build weapons of mass destruction. UN Sanctions against Libya were lifted in September 2003. The process of lifting US unilateral sanctions began in the spring of 2004; all sanctions were removed by June 2006, helping Libya attract greater foreign direct investment, especially in the energy sector. Libyan oil and gas licensing rounds continue to draw high international interest; the National Oil Company set a goal of nearly doubling oil production to 3 million bbl/day by 2012. Libya faces a long road ahead in liberalizing the socialist-oriented economy, but initial steps - including applying for WTO membership, reducing some subsidies, and announcing plans for privatization - are laying the groundwork for a transition to a more market-based economy. The non-oil manufacturing and construction sectors, which account for more than 20% of GDP, have expanded from processing mostly agricultural products to include the production of petrochemicals, iron, steel, and aluminum. Climatic conditions and poor soils severely limit agricultural output, and Libya imports about 75% of its food. Libya's primary agricultural water source remains the Great Manmade River Project, but significant resources are being invested in desalinization research to meet growing water demands.
GDP (purchasing power parity)		$87.72 billion (2008 est.) $82.83 billion (2007 est.) $78.44 billion (2006 est.) note: data are in 2008 US dollars
GDP (official exchange rate)		$89.92 billion (2008 est.)
GDP - real growth rate(%)		5.9% (2008 est.) 5.6% (2007 est.) 5.9% (2006 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP)		$14,200 (2008 est.) $13,700 (2007 est.) $13,300 (2006 est.) note: data are in 2008 US dollars
GDP - composition by sector(%)		agriculture: 1.7% industry: 70.9% services: 27.4% (2008 est.)
Labor force		1.64 million (2008 est.)
Labor force - by occupation(%)		agriculture: 17% industry: 23% services: 59% (2004 est.)
Unemployment rate(%)		30% (2004 est.)
Population below poverty line(%)		7.4% (2005 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share(%)		lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%
Investment (gross fixed)(% of GDP)		9.3% of GDP (2008 est.)
Budget		revenues: $58.04 billion expenditures: $35.22 billion (2008 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)(%)		10.4% (2008 est.) 6.3% (2007 est.)
Stock of money		$26.66 billion (31 December 2008) $18.04 billion (31 December 2007)
Stock of quasi money		$4.264 billion (31 December 2008) $3.192 billion (31 December 2007)
Stock of domestic credit		$NA (31 December 2008) $NA (31 December 2007)
Market value of publicly traded shares		$NA
Economic aid - recipient		ODA, $24.44 million (2005 est.)
Public debt(% of GDP)		4% of GDP (2008 est.) 8.8% of GDP (2004 est.)
Agriculture - products		wheat, barley, olives, dates, citrus, vegetables, peanuts, soybeans; cattle
Industries		petroleum, iron and steel, food processing, textiles, handicrafts, cement
Industrial production growth rate(%)		6.2% (2008 est.)
Current account balance		$37.39 billion (2008 est.) $28.45 billion (2007 est.)
Exports		$64.5 billion (2008 est.) $46.97 billion (2007 est.)
Exports - commodities(%)		crude oil, refined petroleum products, natural gas, chemicals
Exports - partners(%)		Italy 38%, Germany 12%, France 7.4%, Spain 6.9%, US 6.4%, Switzerland 4.6% (2008)
Imports		$26.55 billion (2008 est.) $17.7 billion (2007 est.)
Imports - commodities(%)		machinery, semi-finished goods, food, transport equipment, consumer products
Imports - partners(%)		Italy 22.2%, China 9.3%, Germany 8.6%, Turkey 6.1%, Tunisia 5.8%, South Korea 4.7%, US 4.1%, France 4.1% (2008)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold		$92.51 billion (31 December 2008 est.) $79.6 billion (31 December 2007 est.)
Debt - external		$6.223 billion (31 December 2008 est.) $4.837 billion (31 December 2007 est.)
Stock of direct foreign investment - at home		$11.23 billion (31 December 2008 est.) $8.775 billion (31 December 2007 est.)
Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad		$5.15 billion (31 December 2008 est.) $3.7 billion (31 December 2007 est.)
Exchange rates		Libyan dinars (LYD) per US dollar - 1.2112 (2008 est.), 1.2604 (2007), 1.3108 (2006), 1.3084 (2005), 1.305 (2004)
Currency (code)		Libyan dinar (LYD)
Telephones - main lines in use		1.033 million (2008)
Telephones - mobile cellular		4.828 million (2008)
Telephone system		general assessment: telecommunications system is state-owned and service is poor, but investment is being made to upgrade; state retains monopoly in fixed-line services; mobile cellular telephone system became operational in 1996; multiple providers for a mobile telephone system that is growing rapidly; combined fixed line and mobile telephone density is approaching 100 telephones per 100 persons domestic: microwave radio relay, coaxial cable, cellular, tropospheric scatter, and a domestic satellite system with 14 earth stations international: country code - 218; satellite earth stations - 4 Intelsat, NA Arabsat, and NA Intersputnik; submarine cables to France and Italy; microwave radio relay to Tunisia and Egypt; tropospheric scatter to Greece; participant in Medarabtel (2008)
Internet country code		.ly
Internet users		323,000 (2008)
Airports		137 (2009)
Pipelines(km)		condensate 776 km; gas 2,860 km; oil 6,987 km (2008)
Roadways(km)		total: 100,024 km paved: 57,214 km unpaved: 42,810 km (2003)
Ports and terminals		As Sidrah, Az Zuwaytinah, Marsa al Burayqah, Ra's Lanuf, Tripoli, Zawiyah
Military branches		Armed Peoples on Duty (APOD, Army), Libyan Arab Navy, Libyan Arab Air Force (Al-Quwwat al-Jawwiya al-Jamahiriya al-Arabia al-Libyya, LAAF), Libyan Coast Guard (2008)
Military service age and obligation(years of age)		17 years of age (2004)
Manpower available for military service		males age 16-49: 1,682,183 females age 16-49: 1,611,001 (2008 est.)
Manpower fit for military service		males age 16-49: 1,466,578 females age 16-49: 1,409,684 (2009 est.)
Manpower reaching militarily significant age annually		male: 60,710 female: 58,219 (2009 est.)
Military expenditures(% of GDP)		3.9% of GDP (2005 est.)
Disputes - international		Libya has claimed more than 32,000 sq km in southeastern Algeria and about 25,000 sq km in the Tommo region of Niger in a currently dormant dispute; various Chadian rebels from the Aozou region reside in southern Libya
Refugees and internally displaced persons		refugees (country of origin): 8,000 (Palestinian Territories) (2007)
Trafficking in persons		current situation: Libya is a transit and destination country for men and women from sub-Saharan Africa and Asia trafficked for the purposes of forced labor and commercial sexual exploitation tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List - Libya is on the Tier 2 Watch List for its failure to provide evidence of increasing efforts to address trafficking in persons in 2007 when compared to 2006, particularly in the area of investigating and prosecuting trafficking offenses; Libya did not publicly release any data on investigations or punishment of any trafficking offenses (2008)
Electricity - production(kWh)		23.98 billion kWh (2007 est.)
Electricity - production by source(%)		fossil fuel: 100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001)
Electricity - consumption(kWh)		22.17 billion kWh (2007 est.)
Electricity - exports(kWh)		104 million kWh (2007 est.)
Electricity - imports(kWh)		77 million kWh (2007 est.)
Oil - production(bbl/day)		1.875 million bbl/day (2008 est.)
Oil - consumption(bbl/day)		273,000 bbl/day (2008 est.)
Oil - exports(bbl/day)		1.542 million bbl/day (2007 est.)
Oil - imports(bbl/day)		575.3 bbl/day (2007 est.)
Oil - proved reserves(bbl)		43.66 billion bbl (1 January 2009 est.)
Natural gas - production(cu m)		15.9 billion cu m (2008 est.)
Natural gas - consumption(cu m)		5.5 billion cu m (2008 est.)
Natural gas - exports(cu m)		10.4 billion cu m (2008)
Natural gas - proved reserves(cu m)		1.54 trillion cu m (1 January 2009 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate(%)		0.3% (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS		10,000 (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths		NA
Literacy(%)		definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 82.6% male: 92.4% female: 72% (2003 est.)
School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education)(years)		total: 17 years male: 16 years female: 17 years (2003)
Education expenditures(% of GDP)		2.7% of GDP (1999)