Personal life
Gaddafi has eight children, seven of them sons. His eldest son, Muhammad Gaddafi, is by a wife now in disfavor, but runs the Libyan Olympic Committee and owns all the telecommunication companies in Libya.
The next eldest, Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, was born in 1972, is a painter, and runs a charity that has been involved in negotiating freedom for hostages taken by Islamic militants, especially in the Philippines. In 2006, after sharply criticizing his father's regime, Saif Al Islam briefly left Libya, reportedly to take on a position in banking outside of the country. He returned to Libya soon after, launching an environment-friendly initiative to teach children how they can help clean up parts of Libya. He has also been on the forefront of resolving the HIV case of a Palestinian doctor, and Bulgarian nurses described previously.
The third eldest, Al-Saadi Gaddafi, is married to the daughter of a military commander. Al Saadi runs the Libyan Football Federation, plays for Italian Serie A team U.C. Sampdoria, made billions of dollars in the petrol industry, and produces films.
The fourth eldest, Mutasim-Billah Gaddafi, was a Lieutenant Colonel in the Libyan army. He fled to Egypt after allegedly masterminding an Egyptian-backed coup attempt against his father. Gaddafi forgave Mutasim-Billah, and he returned to Libya, where he now holds the post of national security adviser and heads his own unit within the army. Saif Al Islam and Mutasim-Billah are both seen as possible successors to their father.
The fifth eldest, Hannibal, once worked for a public marine transportation company in Libya. He is most notable for being involved in a series of violent incidents throughout Europe, including charges against him for beating up his then-pregnant girlfriend, Alin Skaf. (In September 2004, Hannibal was involved in a police chase in Paris.)
Gaddafi has two younger sons, Saif Al Arab and Khamis, a police officer in Libya.
Gaddafi's only daughter is Ayesha Gaddafi, a lawyer who had joined the defense team of executed former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein. She married a cousin of her father in 2006.
Gaddafi's reportedly adopted daughter, Hanna, was killed in the 1986 USAF bombing raid. At a "concert for peace" held on April 15, 2006 in Tripoli to mark the 20th anniversary of the bombing raid, U.S. singer Lionel Richie told the audience:
"Hanna will be honored tonight because of the fact that you've attached peace to her name."
In January 2002, Gaddafi purchased a 7.5% share of Italian football club Juventus for USD 21 million, through Lafico ("Libyan Arab Foreign Investment Company"). Though Gaddafi is an avid football fan, this more importantly continued a longstanding association with the late Gianni Agnelli, the primary investor in Fiat. Gaddafi has also become involved in chess: in March 2004, FIDE, the game's world governing body, announced that he would be providing prize money for the World Championship, held in June-July 2004 in Tripoli.
Lahore, Pakistan's primary cricket stadium, Gaddafi Stadium, is named after him.
In addition to his Green Book, al-Gaddafi is the author of a 1996 collection of short stories, Escape to Hell.
In November 2002, he hosted the Miss Net World beauty pageant, a first for Libya and, as far as is known, the world's first to be held on the internet.
Gaddafi's personal bodyguard, the Amazonian guard, is composed of women who are martial arts experts and highly trained in the use of weapons. The Amazonian guard accompanied him on his 2004 visit to Brussels.
The Amazonian Guard sparked an international incident in 2006 when Gaddafi landed in Nigeria with over two hundred armed guards for a summit. Nigerian security officials refused to allow the Libyans entry based on their armaments, and Gaddafi angrily resolved to set off on foot 40 km to Nigeria's capital from the airport. The Nigerian President personally intervened, and a compromise was sought. However, the Libyans rejected mediation and threatened to fly home, whereupon the Nigerians revoked their compromise offers and announced that the Libyans could only bring in 8 pistols, which is the limit for international delegations. The Libyans finally backed down and complied with the Nigerians after several hours.
Gaddafi holds an honorary degree from Megatrend University in Belgrade, proclaimed by former Yugoslav President Zoran Lilic.