Pol Pot was a Cambodian communist revolutionary who led the Khmer Rouge from 1963 until 1997, serving as Prime Minister of Democratic Kampuchea from 1976 to 1979. Born Saloth Sar on May 19, 1925, Pol Pot was educated in Paris, where he became involved with communist ideology.
Upon returning to Cambodia, he joined the fight against the monarchy and eventually emerged as a leader within the Khmer Rouge, an extremist communist faction that sought to transform Cambodia into a rural agrarian socialist society.
Pol Pot's regime, which came to power in April 1975, is infamous for its brutal policies aimed at eradicating the country’s existing social structures. Under his leadership, the Khmer Rouge forcibly evacuated urban populations, closed schools and hospitals, and abolished money and private property. The regime implemented radical agrarian reforms that resulted in widespread famine and suffering.
The most notorious aspect of Pol Pot's rule was the Cambodian genocide, during which an estimated 1.7 million people—around a quarter of Cambodia's population—died due to starvation, forced labor, torture, and execution. The regime targeted intellectuals, professionals, and perceived political enemies, leading to the deaths of many Cambodians.
Pol Pot's reign came to an end in 1979 when Vietnam invaded Cambodia, leading to the collapse of the Khmer Rouge government. He continued to lead the Khmer Rouge in exile until the late 1990s. Pol Pot died on April 15, 1998, without having faced trial for his crimes. His legacy is one of extreme brutality and human rights abuses, and he is widely regarded as one of the most notorious figures in the history of modern Cambodia and the world.