Most powerful people in the world (2008)

US Army Gen David H Petraeus, the new head of Central Command (stretches across 20 countries, from Egypt to Central Asia and Pakistan), is the 16th most powerful person in the world.Newsweek says, 'As of now, the United States does not have a coherent strategy toward the Arab and Muslim worlds. Petraeus, more than anyone else in the US government, will be sponsible for forging one.'In the words of Defence Secretary Robert Gates, "Petraeus is a pre-eminent soldier, scholar and statesman of his generation."