The following are important moments in the rise and fall of Moammar Gadhafi:

September 1, 1969: 27-year-old Gadhafi leads a military coup against Libya's king.

April 5, 1986: Terrorist bombing of a German nightclub kills 2 U.S. servicemen. U.S. retaliates with air strikes in Libya because of the Gadhafi government's alleged involvement in the bombing.

December 21, 1988: Bombing of Pan Am flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland kills 270 people.

1992: U.S. and U.N. sanction Libya after explosives are traced to Libyan sources.

April 5, 1999: Gadhafi turns over two Libyan officials to Scottish authorities for trial in Lockerbie bombing. U.S. and U.N. suspend sanctions.

2003: Gadhafi admits responsibility for the attack and agrees to pay victims' families more than $2 billion in compensation.

December 19, 2003: Libya promises to eliminate nuclear programs and weapons of mass destruction. U.S. and Libya establish full diplomatic ties.

August 20, 2009: Scotland frees Lockerbie bomber on compassionate grounds. Doctors say he has terminal cancer and only months to live. He had served eight years of a minimum 27-year prison sentence. He returns to Libya and is still alive.

February 2001: Days of pro-democracy protests lead to demonstrators taking over parts of the country.

August 23, 2011: Fighters for Libya's opposition National Transitional Council overrun Moammar Gadhafi's compound in Tripoli.

October 20, 2011: Reports quote NTC officials saying provisional fighters kill Moammar Gadhafi.