Mustafa Ben Halim

Mustafa Ben Halim مصطفى أحمد بن حليم
Prime Minister of Libya
In office 12 April 1954 – 25 May 1957
Preceded by	Muhammad Sakizli
Succeeded by	Abdul Majid Kubar
Foreign Minister of Libya
In office 3 December 1954 – 30 October 1956
Prime Minister	Himself
Preceded by	Abdul Salam al-Buseiri
Succeeded by	Ali Sahli
Transport Minister of Libya
In office 18 February 1954 – 19 December 1954
Prime Minister	Muhammad Sakizli Himself
Preceded by	Ibrahim ben Shaaban
Succeeded by	Ali Sahli
Personal details
Born	(1921-01-29) 29 January 1921 Alexandria, Egypt

Mustafa Ahmed Ben Halim (Arabic: مصطفى احمد بن حليم‎‎) (born 29 January 1921) was the Prime Minister of Libya from 12 April 1954 to 25 May 1957.

Ben Halim was born in exile in Alexandria, Egypt. He graduated with a BS in Civil Engineering from the Egyptian University in Alexandria in 1943. He returned to Libya in 1950 to help with the reconstruction of the country following the Second World War and subsequent Allied occupation of Libya. He was appointed Minister of Public Works in Libya's first government in 1953. Appointed Prime Minister in 1954 until 1957. Ben Halim was the Private Councilor to the King of Libya from 1957 to 1958. He was the Libyan Ambassador to France from 1958 to 1960. He left Public service in 1960 to start his own construction business. He was away during the 1969 coup, and was unable to return to Libya. He briefly settled in Beirut, Lebanon in 1970 to pursue new business ventures. He was a victim of a failed kidnapping attempt by mercenaries hired by Gaddhafi. He then moved to London in 1973. In 1980 he was appointed Personal Councilor to then Crown Prince Fahd bin Abdul Aziz of Saudi Arabia. Ben Halim is the last surviving of the Kingdom of Libya's premiers, and the only one of them who survived the fall of Muammar Gaddafi in 2011.

Notable Awards & Recognition

The Ben Halim family gave an estimated $10 million for charity during the Libyan revolution to support citizens needs for emergency food and medical supplies. He was one of the main supporters of Ahmed ben Bella, leader of the Algerian Freedom movement, against French Occupation. He founded the University of Libya and the Central Bank of Libya. After his resignation from government, he tried to move Libya towards a more open Democracy. He led the drafting of petroleum laws in Libya and wrote two books on the history of Libya, which are being republished in Arabic and English, including Libya: The Years of Hope.

Ben Halim's eldest son Amr Mustafa Ben Halim founded the Forum for Democratic Libya (FDL) after the revolution of February 2011 to promote and advocate a culture of democracy and has supported other civil society organisations as they seek to develop a voice and have an impact in post revolution Libya. Another son, Tarek Mustafa Ben Halim, founded Alfanar, the Arab region's first venture philanthropy organisation, in 2004, after a career in investment banking. Tarek went back to Libya in 2005/6 to support Saif al-Islam Gaddafi in his attempts to bring about political reform. Tarek then resigned in 2008, as he was disenchanted with the lack of true intent to reform, and died in December 2009.

Literature

• Libya: The Years of Hope - The Memoirs of Mustafa Ahmed Ben-Halim - Former Prime Minister of Libya, ISBN 0-9532961-0-5
• Libya: The Years of Hope - The Memoirs of Mustafa Ahmed Ben-Halim - Former Prime Minister of Libya, ISBN 0-9532961-1-3
• "Libya's Hidden Pages of History: A Memoir - صفحات مطوية من تاريخ ليبيا السياسي" Rimal Publications, 2011 (Arabic Edition) ISBN 9789963610761
• "Libya's Hidden Pages of History: A Memoir" Rimal Publications, 2013 (English Edition)

External links

• Forum for Democratic Libya