Ismail Omar Guelleh
| Ismaïl Omar Guelleh إسماعيل عمر جليه |
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|---|---|
 |
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| 2nd President of Djibouti | |
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Assumed office 8 May 1999 |
|
| Prime Minister |
Barkat Gourad Hamadou Dileita Mohamed Dileita Abdoulkader Kamil Mohamed |
| Preceded by | Hassan Gouled Aptidon |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
27 November 1946 Dire Dawa, Ethiopia |
| Political party | People's Rally for Progress |
| Spouse(s) | Kadra Mahmoud Haid |
| Religion | Sunni Islam |
Ismaïl Omar Guelleh (Somali: Ismaaciil Cumar Geelle; Arabic: إسماعيل عمر جليه) (born 27 November 1946) is the current President of Djibouti, in office since 1999.
Guelleh was first elected as President in 1999 as the handpicked successor to his uncle, Hassan Gouled Aptidon, who had ruled Djibouti since independence in 1977. Guelleh was re-elected in 2005, 2011 and again in 2016; the 2011 election was largely boycotted by the opposition amid complaints over widespread irregularities. He is often referred to in the region by his initials, IOG. Guelleh has been characterized as a dictator, and his rule has been criticized by some human rights groups.
Guelleh was born in Dire Dawa, Ethiopia, into the politically powerful Mamassan subclan of the Issa clan. When Guelleh was younger he attended a traditional Islamic school. In the late 1960s, Guelleh migrated to Djibouti before finishing high school. He later joined the police, becoming a junior non-commissioned officer. He entered the service in 1968. After Djibouti became independent, he became head of the secret police and chief of the cabinet in the government of his uncle Hassan Gouled Aptidon. He received training from the Somali National Security Service and then from the French Secret Service, and was intended to become his uncle's successor. "The key to Guelleh's success is the skillful way in which he has played the cards in his strong hand", according to PINR.
On February 4, 1999, President Gouled Aptidon announced that he would retire at the time of the next election, and an extraordinary congress of his party, the ruling People's Rally for Progress (RPP), chose Guelleh as its presidential candidate. As the joint candidate of the RPP and moderate wing of the Front for the Restoration of Unity and Democracy (FRUD), Guelleh won the presidential election held on April 9, 1999 with 74.02% of the vote, defeating his only challenger, the independent candidate Moussa Ahmed Idriss. He took office on May 8. Moussa Ahmed Idriss was arrested the following September for "threatening the morale of the armed forces" and detained at an undisclosed location.
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