Let-down in Libya

Image via Wikipedia

Doing business with Muammer Gaddafi is a perilous task, as the release of Abdelbaset Ali al-Megrahi, the Lockerbie bomber, has painfully demonstrated in Britain.

Libya’s mercurial colonel operates under the assumption that he can do as he pleases as long as he stays clear of funding terrorists or building weapons of mass destruction. Sadly, politicians have been willing to indulge him.

But now the Libyan leader is taking his mischief to a new level, imposing restrictions on foreign businesses dazzled by Africa’s biggest proven oil reserves and the promise of an impressive under-explored territory.