Algerian President who presided over the end of the country's bloody civil war and quelled civil unrest. He first took office in 1999 and in 2012 he became the longest-serving President of Algeria.
He was in the government of a previous President but was forced out after a political power shift.
One of his first acts as President was to make peace with the anti-government guerrilla fighters, offering them amnesty.
He was born into a large family: four brothers and three half-sisters. He married Amal Triki in 1990; but they later divorced.
His country has produced many notable people, including the iconic fashion designer Yves Saint Laurent.
