WILL BRITAIN LAND "ON THE SHORES OF TRIPOLI"? – AT 9:16 A.M. ET:  We cannot confirm this
story,  from London's Daily Mail, but we think it's important enough to report it, with that note of caution:

Britain is to send teams of spies and diplomats into Libya to help oust Colonel Gaddafi, it emerged last night.

MI6 operatives backed by the SAS are to land in the east around the key rebel stronghold of Benghazi 'within days'.

In addition, 600 soldiers of the Black Watch are on 24-hour standby to fly in and avert a humanitarian catastrophe as Libya erupted into a new wave of bloodshed.

And...

British diplomats and spies have been engaged in intensive efforts to speak to opposition forces, which are led by Mustafa Abdel Jalil, head of the rebel National Libyan Council.

Now ministers have approved a presence on the ground to gather information and boost the chances of the rebels.

The liaison teams will be primarily composed of envoys but will include some intelligence officers.

They will link up with Special Forces already in Libya to provide protection and give informal military advice to the Libyan opposition.

COMMENT:  That would be a spectacular move, and certainly hazardous for the Brits involved.  The Obama administration has made clear its reluctance to get involved in military action in Libya, but we may be pushed by events, especially if the humanitarian catastrophe increases.

Can Gaddafi survive?  Well, who really knows?  There are press reports this morning that Washington's "new" or "newest" or "revised" policy in the Mideast is to urge protesters to work with the existing governments toward reform, rather than to push for a total overthrow.  The policy is based on the concern, entirely reasonable, that the replacement government may be worse, especially for our interests.  But that new policy, assuming the reporting is correct, does not seem to include the exalted Libyan colonel.

March 5, 2011