Quick Study: World's Most Dangerous Leaders

An at-a-glance guide to some of the world's worst bullies, autocrats and irritants.

Since before Vlad the Impaler, some politicians have found the dictator's job description just too good to resist: no boss, no back talk, and often all the riches you can steal from your own people. Despite these perks, the despot's rule often ends badly—witness Hitler and Mussolini, among others. In more modern times, even relatively long-term tyrants like Idi Amin and Nicolae Ceausescu eventually felt the wrath of their peoples' revenge. This month, the United Nations marks the 60th anniversary of the signing of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The nine men listed here, ranging from full-fledged dictators to emerging strongmen, are currently being watched by human rights groups and the U.S. State Department. Look for them to be hoisted by their own petard—or impaled on the broadsword of history—sooner or later.

South-of-the-Border Boss Men
Raúl Castro
Country: Cuba
Came to Power: 2008
He may be new to the role, but Raúl has apprenticed with brother Fidel since the Cuban revolution, the 1959 uprising that saw the murder of thousands and put all private property in Communist hands. Raúl's rise to headman brought no joy to the streets of Havana. There remain some 230 political prisoners in custody, subject to beatings and other inhumane treatment. There is no free press, and unauthorized gatherings of more than three people can lead to jail time. "In terms of human rights violations in Latin America, Cuba is in a league by itself," says Peter DeShazo of the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

Hugo Chávez
Country: Venezuela
Came to Power: 1998
Despite defeat last year of a national referendum that would have expanded Chávez's powers, El Presidente exercises growing control over every institution in the country, harassing journalists, packing the judiciary, and blacklisting opponents. Flush with petro-dollars, Chávez is rabidly anti-American and now has close ties with Iran and China. The Russians have sold him over $4 billion in arms. Chávez "stepped into Castro's shoes in a big way," says Roger Noriega, former U.S. ambassador to the Organization of American States. "The only thing he hasn't done that Castro did is send his own troops to other countries."

Evo Morales
Country: Bolivia
Came to Power: 2005
More populist than potentate, Morales is no Castro or Chávez. (The Daily Show audience applauded him wildly in September 2007.) But his attempt to redistribute wealth and land has met with violence and brought Bolivia to the brink of civil war. Morales also wants to let the long-oppressed indigenous majority enforce their own legal customs. Rights watchers fear this would green-light lynching and mob justice. His economic ties with Chávez and Iran and his staunch support of often innocent coca-leaf growers do not endear him to the United States, which views him warily.
African Autocrats
Robert Mugabe
Country: Zimbabwe
Came to Power: 1980
In a rogues' gallery of African strongmen, you can't beat Mugabe for cold indifference to suffering. His 28-year rule has been a nightmare of atrocities: up to 20,000 killed in a 1980s campaign against rivals; thousands tortured in 2002. Before this year's election runoff could take place, Mugabe's goons killed over 100 people. Meanwhile, unemployment stands at 80%, while 83% live in poverty. Where once Zimbabwe had a vibrant economy, inflation has now topped 100,000% (the world's highest). "This is a country which has been nearly engineered into destruction," says Jon Elliott of Human Rights Watch. Omar Al-Bashir
Country: Sudan
Came to Power: 1989
Over 300,000 people have been killed in the ongoing conflict in Sudan's Darfur region. For the past five years, Al-Bashir's armed forces and government-backed militias have killed, raped, tortured, and pillaged with impunity. Over 2.2 million civilians have been moved to internal displacement camps. The president has also become adept at hampering aid efforts inside the country. Humanitarian operations spend "a staggering amount of time and energy dealing with bureaucracy and paperwork," says Selena Brewer of Human Rights Watch.

Isaias Afwerki
Country: Eritrea
Came to Power: 1993
Afwerki may be the most ruthless ruler you've never heard of. He's been described as "mercurial" and "autocratic." "One questions his emotional approach to issues," says Princeton Lyman, former U.S. ambassador to South Africa. Afwerki's human rights record reads like a how-to manual for aspiring dictators: no opposition parties, no rule of law, no unapproved religions. An unknown number of political prisoners have disappeared into secret jails. The president won a unique distinction last year: Eritrea ranked 169th out of 169 countries in a Reporters Without Borders press-freedom index.
Perpetual Axis of Irritation
Ayatollah Alikhamenei
Country: Iran
Came to Power: 1989
Iran's pompous president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, may grab the headlines, but it's Ayatollah Khamenei, Iran's top cleric, who pulls his strings. And everybody else's. Under this pious tyrant's rule, dissidents, journalists, and bloggers are persecuted, imprisoned, and sometimes tortured for criticizing the government. The criminal justice system is known to mete out medieval punishments, including stoning, flogging, and amputation. Executions, which are not limited to homicide cases, have risen 300% since 2005, and Iran now leads the world in the execution of juveniles. Kim Jong-il
Country: North Korea
Came to Power: 1994
The teased hair, the jumpsuits, the platform shoes—do they come any weirder than Kim Jong-il? While the North Korean "Dear Leader" cuts a comic figure, that's the only funny thing about life north of the DMZ. In the 1990s, one million North Koreans perished in a famine caused in part by failed agricultural policies. While people starved, the military was thriving financially, selling weapons around the world. Kim is responsible for a massive labor camp system filled with 200,000 political prisoners, including children. Prisoners die of starvation, beatings, and exposure to extreme cold. Cruel and ruthless, Kim has cozied up to Iran and Syria, and what's worse, he has nuclear weapons.

Bashar Al-Asad
Country: Syria
Came to Power: 2001
Al-Asad's regime bears all the hallmarks of a typical police state: intolerance of dissent, imprisonment, and the occasional torture of opponents. His justification? The country is in a state of emergency. Then again, it's been in a state of emergency for 45 years. Al-Asad's regime has helped destabilize Lebanon and undermine the Arab-Israeli peace process. Recent signs suggest he may be taking a more cooperative course. But as Martin Indyk of the Brookings Institution noted last year, "Just about every leader who has attempted to deal with Al-Asad has come away frustrated."