WI: Ivorians resist French attack in 2004?

Suppose that the 2004 French-Ivorian clashes had intensified when the Ivorian military was ordered to resist France's attack? What would have happened if French troops met a serious counterattack when they took Yamoussoukro airport and full-scale resistance by the Ivorian army when they entered Abidjan in force?
 
Hmm, I had forgotten about this and what actually happened.

Well, I don't think it would have changed much. The French intervention was not to conquer or anything, it was a "simple" retaliatory measure.

9 French soldiers were killed, 20 to 60 Ivorian civilians were killed during a riot. I don't think either side would want to escalate much more than that (even if that's already pretty escalated).
Economic ties are too important to sever them completely and I don't believe France has the political will to fight what would be in effect a recolonisation war, especially three years after the refusal to go in Irak.

The way I see it, it was a show of dominance, a kind of "slap on the wrist" which looked a lot like putting down a "native revolt" with a show of gunboat diplomacy.
 
Suppose that the What would have happened if French troops met a serious counterattack when they took Yamoussoukro airport and full-scale resistance by the Ivorian army when they entered Abidjan in force?
What Ivorian army? The one that need peacekeeper to hold the rebel in the north?
In the case of a serious resistance the Ivorian army would have to leave the front against the rebels open.

The french intervention was to destroy the ivorian airforce in retaliation for the bombing of peackeepers. Than they were confronted by rioters and need to evacuate the occidental civilians.

As said, no one was interested in escalating the situation.
It was a show of force who degenerate a bit.
 
Top