Halyna Kolotnytska ( uk, Галина Колотницька, ''

née A birth name is the name of a person given upon birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name, or the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a birth certificate or birth re ...

'' Galyna Koschiy, also spelled Galina Kolotnitskaya after the Russian form of her name (russian: Галина Колотницкая); b.2 January 1976) is a Libyan-Ukrainian

nurse Nursing is a profession within the health care sector focused on the care of individuals, families, and communities so they may attain, maintain, or recover optimal health and quality of life. Nurses may be differentiated from other health c ...

and a former member of her country's Antarctic research mission. She is mostly known for her close association with former Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi.

Early life

Kolotnytska was born on 2 January 1976 in

Brovary Brovary ( uk, Бровари, , yi, בראָוואַר, Brovar) is a city in Kyiv Oblast (Region) in northern Ukraine, an eastern suburb of the country's capital, Kyiv. It is the administrative centre of Brovary Raion (district). Brovar ...

,Донька української медсестри Каддафі розповіла про стосунки між ними (ФОТО)

Gazeta.ua ''Gazeta.ua'' ( uk, Газета по-українськи 'Newspaper in Ukrainian') is an illustrated newspaper based in Kyiv covering politics, economics, culture, sports, arts, and other different topics and aimed at Ukrainian-language reade ...

(November 30, 2010) in the

Ukrainian SSR The Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic ( uk, Украї́нська Радя́нська Соціалісти́чна Респу́бліка, ; russian: Украи́нская Сове́тская Социалисти́ческая Респ ...

of the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...

(in present-day

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

). She graduated from an unspecified nursing college in

Kyiv Kyiv, also spelled Kiev, is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2021, its population was 2,962,180, making Kyiv the seventh-most populous city in Europe. Kyi ...

. Kolotnytska's husband, an electrician at a local factory, died in 1992, after which Kolotnytska moved from her local nursing job to a

cook Cook or The Cook may refer to: Food preparation * Cooking, the preparation of food * Cook (domestic worker), a household staff member who prepares food * Cook (professional), an individual who prepares food for consumption in the food industry * ...

position at Ukraine's

Antarctic research station Multiple governments have set up permanent research stations in Antarctica and these bases are widely distributed. Unlike the drifting ice stations set up in the Arctic, the research stations of the Antarctic are constructed either on rock o ...

. There she was described as "harshly enforcing hygiene rules".”Піднімала з-за столу за комір, якщо не помили руки”

(December 10, 2010)

Career

Kolotnytska moved to Libya in 2001, with the help of a medical agency acquired abroad, where she first worked at a hospital and then went on to serve Gaddafi. At the time, Libya was a popular destination for Ukrainian doctors because the pay was higher than in Ukraine. According to various estimates, there were about 500 Ukrainian doctors and nurses in Libya early 2011.В Украину вернулась личная медсестра Каддафи
,

DELO ''Delo'' (russian: Дело) is a business oriented online media in Ukraine, belonging to ekonomika+ media holding. ''Delo'' was the first daily in Ukraine, publishing its real print circulation (13.000 - 15.000) and trying to introduce Western e ...

(27 February 2011) It is reported that Gaddafi employed four nurses from Ukraine. Kolotnytska left Libya in the midst of the

Libyan Civil War Demographics of Libya is the demography of Libya, specifically covering population density, ethnicity, education level, health of the populace, economic status, and religious affiliations, as well as other aspects of the Libyan population. The ...

; evacuated by the Ukrainian ministry of defence she arrived in

(the capital of Ukraine) on 27 February 2011. Kolotnytska applied for

political asylum The right of asylum (sometimes called right of political asylum; ) is an ancient juridical concept, under which people persecuted by their own rulers might be protected by another sovereign authority, like a second country or another ent ...

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

early May 2011. Norwegian authorities swiftly refused to grant asylum to her.

United States diplomatic cables leak

Kolotnytska was described by Gene Cretz, the U.S. ambassador to

Libya Libya (; ar, ليبيا, Lībiyā), officially the State of Libya ( ar, دولة ليبيا, Dawlat Lībiyā), is a country in the Maghreb region in North Africa. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya bo ...

, as the "voluptuous blonde" without whom Muammar Gaddafi, leader of Libya, never traveled. The characterization surfaced after the secret diplomatic cable sent by Cretz was revealed by

WikiLeaks WikiLeaks () is an international non-profit organisation that published news leaks and classified media provided by anonymous sources. Julian Assange, an Australian Internet activist, is generally described as its founder and director and ...

as a part of its

United States diplomatic cables leak The United States diplomatic cables leak, widely known as Cablegate, began on Sunday, 28 November 2010 when WikiLeaks began releasing classified cables that had been sent to the U.S. State Department by 274 of its consulates, embassies, and d ...

. The cable was sent from the United States embassy in

Tripoli Tripoli or Tripolis may refer to: Cities and other geographic units Greece *Tripoli, Greece, the capital of Arcadia, Greece * Tripolis (region of Arcadia), a district in ancient Arcadia, Greece * Tripolis (Larisaia), an ancient Greek city in ...

on 29 September 2009. It was also revealed that the Libyan government sent a private jet to ferry her from Libya to Portugal, to meet Gaddafi during his rest-stop. Kolotnytska alone is said to have "known Gaddafi's routine". Kolotnytska's daughter Tatyana and her mother Iryna have denied that Kolotnytska was Gaddafi's mistress.Gathafi's 'voluptuous' Ukrainian nurse keeps mum
Middle East Online (28 February 2011)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kolotnytska, Halyna Muammar Gaddafi Living people Ukrainian nurses People from Brovary 1972 births Ukrainian emigrants to Norway