Jalal Muhammad Mansur al-Digheily, sometimes transliterated al-Dogheily, is a Libyan politician who served as the Defence Minister of Libya under the

National Transitional Council The National Transitional Council of Libya ( ar, المجلس الوطني الإنتقالي '), sometimes known as the Transitional National Council, was the ''de facto'' government of Libya for a period during and after the Libyan Civil War ...

during the 2011 Libyan civil war. Digheily succeeded Omar El-Hariri no later than 19 May 2011 after the latter was relieved over ongoing tensions with General

Abdul Fatah Younis Abdul Fatah Younis Al-Obeidi (; ar, عبد الفتاح يونس, sometimes transliterated ''Fattah Younis'' or ''Fattah Younes'' or ''Fatah Younes''; 1944 – 28 July 2011) was a senior military officer in Libya. He held the rank of major gene ...

, then the National Liberation Army chief. Though El-Hariri held the title of Minister of Military Affairs, virtually all sources have referred to Digheily as the Defence Minister of the National Transitional Council. He was fired along with 14 other members of the 16-person Executive Board on 8 August 2011, but was reappointed in early October 2011 after continuing in the role of interim defence minister for almost two months. When Prime Minister Abdurrahim El-Keib announced his cabinet on 22 November 2011, Digheily was excluded in favor of

Zintan Brigade The Zintan Brigades are armed units linked to the town of Zintan and its surrounding area, allied to, but separate from, the Libyan National Army. They played a large part in the Libyan Revolution which overthrew Gaddafi and are currently heavi ...

commander Osama al-Juwali.

Background

According to ''

The Economist ''The Economist'' is a British weekly newspaper printed in demitab format and published digitally. It focuses on current affairs, international business, politics, technology, and culture. Based in London, the newspaper is owned by The Eco ...

'', Digheily is a civilian, not a military man.

The Jamestown Foundation The Jamestown Foundation is a Washington, D.C.-based conservative defense policy think tank. Founded in 1984 as a platform to support Soviet defectors, its stated mission today is to inform and educate policy makers about events and trends, wh ...

reported that he holds a

doctorate A doctorate (from Latin ''docere'', "to teach"), doctor's degree (from Latin ''doctor'', "teacher"), or doctoral degree is an academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism ''li ...

2011 Libyan civil war

Unlike his predecessor, Omar El-Hariri, Jalal al-Digheily was reportedly a member of the Executive Board of the National Transitional Council. Digheily met with the chief of staff of the Qatar Armed Forces on 5 July in

Doha Doha ( ar, الدوحة, ad-Dawḥa or ''ad-Dōḥa'') is the capital city and main financial hub of Qatar. Located on the Persian Gulf coast in the east of the country, north of Al Wakrah and south of Al Khor, it is home to most of the count ...

. On 20 July, Digheily visited

Nalut Nalut (sometimes Lalút) ( ar, نالوت) is the capital of the Nalut District in Libya. Nalut lies approximately halfway between Tripoli and Ghadames, at the western end of the Nafusa Mountains coastal range, in the Tripolitania region. The ...

in western Libya's

Nafusa Mountains The Nafusa Mountains (Berber: ''Adrar n Infusen'' (Nafusa Mountain), ar, جبل نفوسة (Western mountain)) are a mountain range in the western Tripolitania region of northwestern Libya. It also includes their regions around the escarpment fo ...

. He heralded the alliance forged between

Arabs The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Western Asia, ...

and

Amazigh , image = File:Berber_flag.svg , caption = The Berber ethnic flag , population = 36 million , region1 = Morocco , pop1 = 14 million to 18 million , region2 = Algeria , pop2 ...

in the region, expressed confidence in Amazigh fighters' ability to defend the nearby Wazzin border crossing with

Tunisia ) , image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa , image_map2 = , capital = Tunis , largest_city = capital , ...

, and confirmed that the NTC was working with

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...

commanders to pinpoint targets loyal to the Libyan Jamahiriya Government, led by Muammar Gaddafi, whom the NTC was trying to oust, on the western front. He was accompanied by a Qatari representative on his trip to Nalut, a journalist with

reported. Digheily was in

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Medit ...

when Younis, his top military commander, was assassinated outside Benghazi on 28 July. He chose to continue his business in Egypt rather than return to Libya immediately, drawing criticism and sparking calls for his resignation from some quarters. The members of the Executive Board, including Digheily, were dismissed ''en masse'' on 8 August 2011, and ''de facto'' Prime Minister Mahmoud Jibril was asked to form a new board. Digheily's replacement was set to be Salem Joha, a Misratan commander favored by Islamist factions, but

Mustafa Abdul Jalil Mustafa Abdul Jalil ( ar, مصطفى عبد الجليل; also transcribed ''Abdul-Jelil, Abd-al-Jalil'', ''Abdel-Jalil'', ''Abdeljalil'' or ''Abdu Al Jeleil''; born 1952) is a Libyan politician who was the Chairman of the National Transitional ...

interceded and said Digheily would retain his position instead.

Al Jazeera Al Jazeera ( ar, الجزيرة, translit-std=DIN, translit=al-jazīrah, , "The Island") is a state-owned Arabic-language international radio and TV broadcaster of Qatar. It is based in Doha and operated by the media conglomerate Al Jazeera ...

claimed that Digheily is also regarded well by Libyan Islamists, with whom

liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

politicians like Jibril and Jalil have occasionally clashed during the transitional period. On 22 November 2011, Osama al-Juwali of the

was announced as Digheily's official successor. Juwali was named after a successful raid by his troops succeeded in capturing

Saif al-Islam Gaddafi Saif al-Islam Muammar al-Gaddafi ( ar, سيف الإسلام معمر القذافي; born 25 June 1972) is a Libyan political figure. He is the second son of the late Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi and his second wife Safia Farkash. He was a p ...

, one of the leading figures of the old regime who remained at large for a month after the formal conclusion of the

war War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violence, destruction, and mortality, using regular o ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Digheily, Jalal al- Year of birth missing (living people) Living people People of the First Libyan Civil War Libyan military personnel Members of the National Transitional Council Libyan Sunni Muslims Defence ministers of Libya