This book is the result of almost three decades of observing and writing about Libya. In the process, countless individuals in a number of countries have talked to me and corresponded with me about Libya. Many of them I have acknowledged earlier in my Libya Since Independence. Since then, however, I have incurred additional debts to a number of others who kindly provided additional help and insights since the late 1990s. In no particular order, they include Dr. Saleh Ibrahim and Milad Saad Milad at the Academy of Higher Education in Tripoli; Ms. Salma al-Gaeer of the Academy of Higher Education and the Green Book Center; Youssef Sawani of the Green Book Center; Zahi Mogherbi of Gar Yunis University; Muhammad Siala, Secretary for International Cooperation; Mehdi Emberish, Secretary of Culture; Ahmed Jalala of the Academy of Graduate Studies; Engineer Jadalla al-Talhi, former Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of the Jamahiriyya; Abu Zayed Dorda, former Prime Minister and Minister of the Economy; Saif al-Islam al-Qadhafi; Salem al-Maiar and Tony Allan of the School of Oriental and African Studies in London; Ethan Chorin of the United States Liaison Office in Tripoli; Tarik Yousef of Georgetown University; David Mack at the Middle East Institute in Washington; Moncef Djaziri at the University of Geneva; and Saad al-Ghariani of the Academy of Higher Education in Tripoli.

A very special thanks to Rosemary Hollis of the Royal Institute of International Affairs in London. My gratitude as well to Robert Springborg and Arnold Luethold, who organized two conferences at, respectively, the London Middle East Centre (at the School of Oriental and African Studies) and the Geneva Centre for the Democratic Control of Armed Forces. Last but not least, my gratitude to Mustafa Ben Halim, Prime Minister of Libya during the monarchy, who agreed to meet in London in order to shed light on the tumultuous developments that took place during his tenure in office. A sabbatical leave from Dartmouth College allowed me to finish the manuscript. Marigold Acland and two anonymous readers for Cambridge University Press provided insightful and thoughtful comments as the manuscript progressed.