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Among the discontented, a young military officer named Muammar Gaddafi emerged. In 1969, while King Idris was away, Gaddafi led a military coup, heralding the beginning of his authoritarian regime. Initially promising social justice and independence from Western influence, Gaddafi's rule increasingly turned autocratic. By the 1980s, his international reputation tarnished due to accusations of supporting terrorism and human rights abuses, leading to international isolation marked by sanctions and airstrikes from the United States.