[xkaydet65]

The Brits and Frogs have ample resources. The Frogs have a six brigade rapid reaction force. The Brits have, besides the Royal Marine Bde, 1st Para, the SAS/SRS Reg’ts., and at least one deployable Division in Germany. Libya is quite reachable from Europe and with Benghazi in rebel hands, no opposed landing would be necessary.As Q’adafy’s forces haven’t been able to crush the amateur rebels, I don’t think the pros of Britain and France would face much difficulty routing the Libyan forces. Of course if an Iraqi type insurgency were to develop I doubt the French and British populations have the staying power to put it down.

[af_vet_rr]

The Brits and French also have their reasons for wanting to muck around in Libya. While a lot of people think about the Pan Am bombing over Scotland, a lot of British think about Gaddafi helping supply the Irish Republican Army in its terrorist attacks against the Brits and British troops. The British don't forget that kind of stuff.

Gaddafi sent the IRA heavy and medium machine guns, rifles, pistols, RPGs, lots of Semtex, and even some SAMs to boot. They've probably been waiting to pay back Gaddafi for decades. That's partly why I think they'll kill him if they can. Gaddafi helped the IRA kill hundreds of British soldiers, and there are probably plenty still in the British military that had friends killed during that time.

[Kenny Bunk]

The Italians swept into Libya in 1911, and although it cost them far more than they had originally thought, they pacified the littoral rather quickly, colonized it, and got it into agricultural production. (They never found the oil!)

.......if insurgency were to develop ...

For the next 25 years, an insurgency developed, somewhat supported by other Euro-powers, that was never quite subdued, so the whole adventure was a net loss. except for leaving some beautiful coastal suburbs, nice buildings and a good road and rail network in Tripolitania and Cyrenaica.