No stalemate in Libya, says Hague

Some 65% asked in a poll say the UK’s involvement in Libya “will last for some time”

The British public is split in its support for the military intervention in Libya, according to a nationwide poll conducted for the BBC.

Of 2,000 asked, 38% thought the UK and its allies were right to carry out air strikes, while 35% said it was the wrong decision.

And 65% said the UK’s involvement in Libya “will last for some time”.

The online poll of 2,011 respondents was conducted by ICM for Broadcasting House on BBC Radio 4, on 30-31 March.

The military action has full UN authority, and the government argues strongly that the attacks have stopped a massacre.

But in the BBC poll, only 38% said it was the “right decision” when asked: “All things considered, do you think that the UK and its allies made the right decision or the wrong decision to conduct military air strikes in Libya?”

This contrasts with the Iraq war in 2003, when a similar poll showed 53% backed military intervention.

In Iraq, the post-invasion bloodshed caused a dramatic drop in popularity for the action.

Pollsters say support for the Libya action will depend on if and when leader Colonel Muammar Gaddafi goes, the number of civilian casualties, and whether there are any British military deaths.

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