The National Transitional Council (NTC) was a transitional government established in the 2011 Libyan civil war. After rebel forces overthrew the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya of Muammar Gaddafi in August 2011, the NTC governed Libya for a further ten months after the end of the war, holding elections to a General National Congress on 7 July 2012, and handing power to the newly elected assembly on 8 August.
The formation of the NTC was announced in the city of Benghazi on 27 February 2011 with the purpose to act as the "political face of the revolution". On 5 March 2011, the council issued a statement in which it declared itself to be the "only legitimate body representing the people of Libya and the Libyan state". An executive board, chaired by Mahmoud Jibril, was formed by the council on 23 March 2011 after being de facto assembled as an "executive team" since 5 March 2011. The NTC issued a Constitutional Declaration in August 2011 in which it set up a road-map for the transition of the country to a constitutional democracy with an elected government.
The council gained international recognition as the legitimate governing authority in Libya and occupied the country's seat at the United Nations. In referring to the Libyan state, the council used simply "Libya". The UN formally recognized the country as "Libya" in September 2011, based on a request from the Permanent Mission of Libya citing the Libyan interim Constitutional Declaration of 3 August 2011. In November 2011, the ISO 3166-1 was altered to reflect the new country name "Libya" in English, "Libye (la)" in French.
After popular movements overturned the rulers of Tunisia and Egypt, Libya's immediate neighbours to the west and east, Libya experienced a full-scale uprising beginning in February 2011. By 20 February, the unrest had spread to Tripoli. Much of Libya had slipped out of Gaddafi's control, falling to anti-Gaddafi forces. Eastern Libya, centered around the second largest city and vital port of Benghazi, was firmly under the control of the opposition. The opposition began to organise themselves into a functioning government. Anti-Gaddafi forces marched on Sirte (Gaddafi's hometown) on 28 September 2011. Gaddafi loyalists delayed the attack with the use of their snipers. The fight for Sirte ended on 20 October with the capture of the town and the death of Colonel Gaddafi.
Early efforts to form a government
On 24 February 2011, politicians, former military officers, tribal leaders, academics and businessmen held a meeting in the eastern city of Bayda. The meeting was chaired by former justice minister Mustafa Abdul Jalil, who quit the Jamahiriya government a few days before. The delegates discussed proposals for interim administration with many delegates asking for UN intervention in Libya. The podium at the meeting displayed the pre-Jamahiriya flag.
On 25 February, Al Jazeera TV reported that talks were taking place between "personalities from eastern and western Libya" to form an interim government for the post-Gaddafi era. The following day, former justice minister Mustafa Abdul Jalil was announced to be leading the process of forming an interim body, to be based in Benghazi. Jalil stated that "Gaddafi alone bore responsibility for the crimes that have occurred" in Libya; he also insisted on the unity of Libya and that Tripoli was the national capital. The efforts to form an alternative government have been supported by the Libyan ambassador in the United States, Ali Suleiman Aujali. The Libyan deputy ambassador to the United Nations, Ibrahim Omar Al Dabashi, stated that he supported a new alternative government "in principle".
Establishment of a national council
A National Transitional Council was formed on 27 February to act as "the political face of the revolution". Its spokesman, Abdul Hafiz Ghoga, made clear at the launch press conference that the national council was not a provisional government and added that the newly formed council was not in contact with foreign governments and did not want them to intervene. He later clarified that an airstrike mandated by the United Nations would not be considered a foreign intervention.
An Al Jazeera journalist in Benghazi reported that a fully fledged interim government would not be formed until Tripoli was under opposition control. This contradicted Jalil's statement of the previous day about the formation of a provisional government. These comments were later clarified by the council as Jalil's "personal views".
On 5 March, the council issued a statement in which it declared itself to be the "sole representative of all Libya". Mustafa Abdul Jalil was named as chairman of the council.
On 10 March, France became the first country to recognise the council as Libya's only legitimate government.
Formation of an executive board
On 23 March, the council established an executive board to act as a transitional government for Libya. Jibril, who had served as chairman of the informal "executive team" since 5 March, was appointed as chairman of that board, stating that council would serve as the "legislative body", and the new Executive Board would serve as the "executive body". Jibril led the meeting and negotiations with French President Nicolas Sarkozy, a meeting that resulted in France officially recognizing the council as the sole representative of the Libyan people.
In mid-January 2012, protesters against the NTC stormed its Benghazi headquarters, demanding greater transparency on expenditures, that Gaddafi-era officials be sacked, and that Islamic sharia law be the source of the country's future constitution. Jalil was in the building, but slipped out the back before protesters broke in and stole computers and furniture. A few days earlier, Abdul Hafiz Ghoga, vice president of the NTC, was surrounded and jostled by a group of university students in Benghazi, before being pulled to safety by supporters.
In a ceremony on 8 August 2012—held in the evening due to the daytime fast of Ramadan—the NTC formally transferred power to the General National Congress. Jalil stepped down as chairman, passing the position to the GNC's oldest member, Mohammed Ali Salim. The NTC was then dissolved, while the GNC members took their oath of office, led by Salim.
Hundreds of people gathered in Tripoli's Martyrs' Square with candles symbolizing reconciliation. The date of the transfer—20 Ramadan on the Islamic calendar—had also been selected for symbolic reasons, as 20 Ramadan the previous year had fallen on 20 August, the date that the rebels attacked Tripoli, leading to Gaddafi's flight. As Jalil addressed the crowd, attendees chanted "Allahu Akbar!" or another phrase meaning "The blood of martyrs will not go wasted!"
According to BBC News, the transfer was "the first peaceful transition of power in Libya's modern history", meaning the history since the end of the monarchy in 1969, when Gaddafi rose to power.