Aisha Gadhafi (C), daughter of Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi and director of the Libyan Waatassimou Charity association, attends the end of the 6th international women's Koran reading competition in Tripoli Aug. 30, 2010.Reuters
Aisha Gadhafi (C), daughter of Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi and director of the Libyan Waatassimou Charity association, attends the end of the 6th international women's Koran reading competition in Tripoli Aug. 30, 2010.ReutersShe was just another Business Administration graduate working in private sector until she met Jordon's king. A very popular figure in the Middle-East, Rania Al Abdullah is the current Queen consort of Jordan as the wife of King Abdullah II of Jordan. Throughout the years, she has striven to improve the quality of education for Jordanian children while, at the same time, advocating the need for education for children across the globe.Reuters.Turkish Prime Minister Tansu Ciller (R) and her Pakistani counterpart Benazir Bhutto (L) December 10 upon latter's arrival at Ankara's Esenboga airport. Ciller and Bhutto are the first female prime ministers of Turkey and Pakistan respectively, both muslim countriesReutersUnlike other Queen’s in the middle east, Sheikha Moza has always been very active in her country’s politics and development. She is the Chairperson of the Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development since 1995, Chairperson of Silatech since 2008, Chairperson of the Arab Democracy Foundation, President of the Supreme Council for Family Affairs since 1998. Currently she is the Chairman of Sidra Medical and Research Center in Doha. Sheikha Moza is also one of the very few middle eastern women to be ranked in the Forbes list of most powerful women at #74.Reuters(L-R) Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi's daughter Aisha Muammar Gadhafi , Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani's wife Fauzia Gilani, Syrian President Bashar Assad's wife Asma Assad, Qatar Amir Sheik Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani's wife Sheikha Mozah bint Nasser Al Missned, Turkey's Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan's wife Emine Erdogan, Jordanian Queen Rania, Lebanese President Michel Suleiman's wife Wafaa Suleyman and Vice Speaker of the Azerbaijani parliament Bahar Muradova pose for a family photo at the Istanbul Meeting in Support of Gaza in Istanbul January 10, 2009.ReutersJordan's Queen Rania addresses the Jeddah Economic Forum in Jeddah February 25, 2007. Queen Rania urged the global community to plant the seeds of acceptance, dialogue and peace for future generations during the forum, the Jordanian News Agency said.REUTERSA woman touches Queen Rania's face during Mother's Day celebrations at Dar Ri?ayat Al Yateem Orphanage in Bayader Wadi Seer in AmmanReutersAyesha GaddafiReutersJordan's Queen Rania (R) holds a baby during a visitReutersJordan's Queen Rania (R) speaks to girls during her visit to the Naour Health Center in Amman August 3, 2011.REUTERSLibyan leader Muammar Gaddafi's daughter Aisha speaks during an interview on state television, in this still image taken from videoReutersSheikha Moza Bint Nasser of Qatarhttp://www.mozabintnasser.qaQatari Emir Sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa al-Thani's wife Sheikha Moza Bint Nasser al-Misnad , UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon's wife Yoo Soon-Taek , Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak's wife Suzanne and French first lady Carla Bruni-Sarkozy attend the Bastille Day parade in Paris, July 14, 2008.ReutersSpanish King Juan Carlos shows the way to Pakistan Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto as Spanish Queen Sofia smiles before their lunch at Zarzuela palace on September 14ReutersFormer Prime Minister of Pakistan, Benazir BhuttoReutersUS First Lady Hillary Clinton (L) and daughter Chelsea Clinton (C) walk with Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto at Bhutto's residence in Islamabad on March 26. Hillary arrived in Pakistan on a three-day visit on the first leg of her 12-day goodwill trip to South Asia. Bhutto holds the hand of her son Bilawal and daughter BakhtawarReuters
Moammar Gadhafi's death has put Aisha Gadhafi back in the spotlight. Described as the "Claudia Schiffer of North Africa" by the Arabic press, she could have easily graced the pages of Vogue but she opted for a role to further her father's cause.
She was the Goodwill Ambassador for United Nations Development Program since 2009 and worked as an emissary to tackle HIV and also violence against women in Libya. The Independent, however, reported that she was recently relieved of her U.N. duties following the bloody repression of a revolt against her father in Libya.
In an exclusive interview with The Telegraph in October, the glamorous lawyer who was part of the defense team for Saddam Hussein in war crimes trial, said this about her father: "The man is the man. He never changes. He is a man of principles, he believes in causes, defending the poor and the underdog. He never changes the main ideas that he believes in."
Scenes of NATO air strikes are not new to her as, at the age of nine, she was witness to the 1986 U.S. air strike in which Gaddafi's adopted daughter Hana was killed. Speaking about the experience, she told The Telegraph: "I woke (up) to the thunder of the bombs and the screams of my sister with blood spattered over me."
Aisha Gadhafi was also a supporter of Irish Republican Army in her youth and on being asked why she supported the anti-American resistance in Iraq, she said: "When you have an occupying army coming from abroad, raping your women and killing your own people, it is only legitimate that you fight them."
While there may be very few women active in politics in Islamic countries, their presence and the change they have brought about is undeniable.
Start the slideshow to take a look at Aisha Gadhafi and the other gorgeous women who changed the face of Islamic countries.
