 Candidates for the Amazonian Guard underwent extensive firearms and martial arts training at a special academy, were required to take an oath of chastity, and had to have been hand-picked by Gaddafi himself.In 1998, one of Gaddafi's female bodyguards was killed and seven others were wounded when Islamic fundamentalists in Libya ambushed Gaddafi's motorcade.It was claimed that the dead guard, Aisha, was Gaddafi's favourite and threw herself across Gaddafi's body to stop the bullets.