Top 10 Brutal Dictators of all time

Most of the countries in the world have at one time or another witnessed a dictatorial rule, some countries are still being ruled by dictators. Dictators obtain power by force and then start to treat innocent citizens and political rivals inhumanly.

Below, I have listed out 10 Brutal dictators and I've ranked them based on the ruthlessness of their crimes, some of these dictators are still in power, so keep reading.

10. Tedoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo

Tedoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo is the current President of Equatorial Guinea since 1979 when he overthrew his Uncle in a coup and executed him after wards.

Citizens can be detained without charge and held in horrifyng conditions. One teacher who was imprisoned was beaten so hard to the extent which he lost his hearing in one ear.

He uses the notorious Black Beach prison to torture prisoners who are starved and placed in shackles so tight it cuts down to the bone.

He is even rumored to have dabble into cannibalism, eating the body parts of his rivals in order to become more powerful.

9. Isias Afwerki

Ever since Eritrea gained independence from Italy in 1993, only one man has been ruling Eritrea, Isias Afwerki.

Eritrea has been dubbed "Africa's North Korea" and in some measures, it is actually more dictatorial than Kim Jong Un's regime. Eritrea has the least free and independent media of any country in the world. It is also reported to have the lowest rate of cellphone ownership on Earth and just 1% of the population can be found online.

This media blackout has helped President Afwerki stay in power since 1993. The outside world rarely get a glimpse of what goes on in Eritrea and accessing information  of the outside world is virtually impossible in Eritrea.

Journalist and political prisoners are held in camps and tortured by being locked in shipping containers in the desert. Fair trials are not common, water torture, beatings and electrocution are the standard interrogation methods.

8. Bashar al-Assad

Bashar al-Assad became President of Syria in year 2000. He was the only candidate in the general election that was conducted and won the election with 99.7% of the vote.

During his regime, he allowed almost no political dissent and by 2006, there was an estimated 400 political prisoners in Syrian jails where they faced torture and death.

A civil uprising and subsequent civil war in 2011 has caused the death of over 400, 000 people and created about 4 million refugees in 2013, as at of 2018, the numbers of Syrian refugees in neighbouring countries is estimated around 2.9 to 3.6 million people. He also ordered the torture and killing of 11,000 prisoners.

Children aged as young as 13 faced electrocution, whipping or having their nails pulled out by pliers.

7. Idi Amin

Idi Amin was a Ugandan military officer who served as a Military President of Uganda from 1971 until he was ousted in 1979.

Military background and charisma served Idi Amin's dictatorial rule well as he overthrew the Ugandan President, Milton Obote, and became self proclaimed President for life.

His brutal eight years reign was marked with economic breakdown, political totalitarianism, corruption, human rights violation, mass murders and rumors of cannibalism by Idi Amin himself.

6. Kim Jong Un 

Kim Jong Un became the supreme leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea(North Korea) in 2011 after the death of his father, Kim Jong Il.

As Supreme leader, Kim Jong Un carried on the regime of his father, presiding over a totalitarian police state and a network of prison camps that house up to 20,000 people.

These camps are so brutal that mothers are forced to murder their newborn children and prisoners are forced into cages so small that circulation to their limbs is cut off until they swell and turn brown.

When Kim Jong Un took over power in 2011, that year alone, there were 21 public executions. Kim has also gotten rid of key officials in the country, he killed his uncle, Jang Sung Taek, for allegedly plotting against him. He also reportedly ordered the assasination of his brother, Kim Jong-Nam

He has also removed other high ranking officials, some allegedly being burned alive with a flame thrower or executed in front of aircraft gun carriers.


5. Muammar Gadaffi

Muammar Gadaffi was a Libyan revolutionary who governed the Libyan Arab Republic from 1969 until 2011.

Shortly after becoming Libyan's ruler, Gadaffi obtained his influence by making opposition to his regime illegal. He was often referred to as "the Mad Dog of the Middle East".

After he was suspected of crimes against humanity, Muammar Gadaffi established extensive surveillance of his people and became increasingly wealthy as majority of Libyans lived below the poverty line.

Despite his indiscriminately murder of Rebels during the Arab spring, discontented Libyans fought back and Gadaffi was killed.

4. Benito Mussolini

Benito Mussolini served as Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Italy from 1922 until he was overthrown and executed in 1943.

He was portrayed as the only man capable of unifying Italy and restoring order.

When he came into power, he disassemble the democratic system and transformed Italy into a one party state in which his Fascist party was the only legal party.

Benito Mussolini expanded the Italian empire by colonizing African countries. He played a major role in World War II. The deaths recorded during the Mussolini's dictatorial rule was between 1 to 3 million people.

It was his misguided partnership with Adolf Hitler that led to his downfall.

3. Joseph Stalin

Joseph Stalin was a Soviet revolutionary who served as the De-facto dictator of the Soviet Union from 1943 to 1953.

He manipulated his way into power after the death of his boss, Vladimir Lenin, and named himself "Premier of the Soviet Union" in 1941. He discredited and eliminated his political rivals.

Joseph Stalin was a brutal dictator who purposely allowed Ukrainians to starve as a cheaper way to set up mass extermination.

His aggressive industrialization killed Millions due to famine and murder. The most brutal part was when citizens were deported, incarcerated and randomly executed.

2. Adolf Hitler

Adolf Hitler served as the leader of the German Nazi party and Chancellor of Germany from 1933 until his death in 1945. He also served as the first and only Fuhrer in 1934.

When he assumed power, he made his motives clear by making his Nazi party the only legal political party, a move similar to what Mussolini did. He used suppression, propaganda and execution to crush his opponents.

By annexing countries, triggering World War II and initiating a holocaust of Jews, Homosexuals, Communists and the Handicapped, Hiltler caused tens of millions of death.

1. Mao Zedong

Mao Zedong was the founding father of the People's Republic of China, which was achieved in 1949 after a brutal civil war through which the Communist Party overthrew the government. He then took over as President from 1949 until 1976.

The Civil war alone killed about three million people and Mao Zedong was also heavily involved in a Communist war.

Mao's autocratic rule caused vast numbers of death with estimates ranging from 30 to 70 Million people due to starvation, prison labour and mass executions.

In fact, Mao Zedong reportedly said it was better for half the population to be wiped out so that the others can thrive.

So, that is my top 10 brutal Dictators of all time. Do you agree with this list? Please let me know in the comment section and please don't forget to share this article.