The Libyan leader Khadaffi - who has been in power for 33 years now - has the reputation of being 'the mad dog of the Middle East', as he was called by Ronald Reagan. He is alleged to have been involved in the bombing of a passenger aeroplane over Lockerby and in the production of weapons of mass destruction. But the Khadaffi of today poses as a diplomat and tries to bring reconciliation between the Palestinians and Israelis. Together with the West he struggles against Al-Qaida, and he wants to transform the Arab world into a sort of European Union. Paolo Pellegrin portrays the Tripoli (Libya's capital) of today, which reflects the combination of the traditional and modern dictated by Khadaffi. He also photographed Khadaffi himself, a man whose sincerity is still in doubt.

Magnum photographer Paolo Pellegrin (b. Italy, 1964) has received many awards for his reporting from conflict regions. In 1995 he won the first prize in the Daily News category in World Press Photo.

Courtesy Magnum Photos (France) / New York Times Magazine (USA)