Country
Countries A-Z
Libya
Republic of Libya
al-Jumhuriyyah al-Libiyah
Political Status: Independent state since December 24, 1951; revolutionary republic declared September 1, 1969; name changed from Libyan Arab Republic to Libyan Arab People’s Republic in 1976; present name adopted March 2, 1977; interim draft constitution promulgated on August 3, 2011.
Area: 679,358 sq. mi. (1,759,540 sq. km).
Population: 6,330,000 (2016E—UN); 6,541,948 (2016E—U.S. Census).
Major Urban Centers (2015E—UN): TRIPOLI (Tarabulus, 1,126,000), Benghazi (Banghazi, 746,000), Misurata (Misratah, 672,000). (The government relocated to Bayda [Beida] in June 2014 and the House of Representatives relocated to Tobruk, about 700 miles east of Tripoli near the border with Egypt in August 2014.)
Official Language: Arabic.
Monetary Unit: Dinar (official rate October 1, 2016: 1.36 dinar = $1US).
Prime Minister: Abdullah Al-THANI (disputed), elected on March 11, 2014 (resigned after June elections ...