Position: President of Egypt
Age: 82
Time in Power: 28 years
Mubarak came to power after the assassination of his predecessor President Sadat, by army officers opposed to him signing the Egypt-Israel Peace Treaty. He has been ruling under Emergency Law rule, or "state of emergency," ever since. This means the government reserves the right to imprison people without trial, confiscate the funds of the opposition and cancel parliamentary elections. His time in power has been marked by the improvement of relations with other Arab countries and the establishment of civil relations with Israel. He backed Saudi Arabia's request for American intervention to help free Kuwait after Iraq's invasion in 1990—91 and has long been the recipient of significant military and monetary aid from Washington. He has also survived six assassination attempts.