Moussa Koussa

Moussa Muhammad El-Haj Nemr Koussa (Arabic: موسى محمد الحاج نمر كوسا, Arabic pronunciation: [ˈmusaˌkosa]; born 1949?) is a Libyan political figure and diplomat who held several high-profile positions in the Libyan government, lastly as Minister of Foreign Affairs from March 2009 until the Libyan Civil War, when he resigned his position on 30 March 2011. Koussa previously headed the Mukhabarat el-Jamahiriya (national intelligence agency) from 1994 to 2009, and was considered one of the country's most powerful figures and a member of Gaddafi's inner circle. When he arrived in the United Kingdom in March 2011, the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office released an official statement saying that Koussa no longer wished to represent the Libyan government and intended to resign. No charges were pressed against him by the British government, and in the following months financial sanctions on him were lifted by the Obama administration. He now lives in a small house in a suburb of Doha, Qatar, after being asked to leave his suite in Doha's luxurious Four Seasons hotel.