Bloodless Coup in Libya - Sept. 1, 1969

King Idris of Libya was ousted by a military regime in a bloodless coup on this day, September 1, in the year 1969. Iraq and Egypt were the first countries to announce recognition of the new regime. At this time, Britain was involved in extensive engineering projects in the country and was also Libya's largest supplier of arms. The U.S. had an airbase in the country. Libya's new cabinet was announced on Sept. 8. The commander in chief was colonel Muammar Ghaddafi, age 27. He took the title of prime minister in 1980.