In the 1980s , Libyan-French discord centered on the situation in Chad . As mentioned , the two countries found themselves supporting opposite sides in the Chadian Civil War . In late 1987 , there were 1,300 French troops in Chad , primarily defending the Chadian capital N'DJamena from attack , including an air attack using Tupolev Tu-22 strategic bombers ; France also gave $ 90 million in military aid to Chad that year . " . However , French policy did not permit its forces to cross the sixteenth parallel . Thus , direct clashes with Libyan soldiers seemed unlikely . However , Libyan diplomats still accused France of having " direct responsibility " in the escalation of the war , and the Libyan news agency JANA called the raid a " combined Franco-American military action " and charged that Washington and Paris were " behind the aggression against Libya . " French-Libyan relations deteriorated substantially in the aftermath of the 1989 UTA Flight 772 bombing . On 19 September 1989 , a McDonnell Douglas DC-10 airliner operated by French airline UTA ( Union de Transports Aeriens ) as UTA Flight 772 , was destroyed by a bomb in the cargo hold , killing all 170 passengers and crew ( including 54 French nationals ) . France blamed Libya for the attack . The cour d'assise de Paris found six Libyans guilty of the attack and awarded the families of the UTA victims sums ranging from € 3 000 to € 30 000 depending on their relationship to the dead . The French relatives ' group " Les Familles du DC10 d'UTA " 8 signed an agreement on 9 January 2004 with the Gaddafi International Foundation for Charity Associations accepting a compensation payment of $ 170 million United States dollars , or $ 1 million for each of the 170 UTA victims . Similarly , US District Judge Henry H. Kennedy ( of the District of Columbia ) also found Libya directly responsible for the bombing in 2007 ( in a trial brought by the families of 7 US nationals killed on the flight ) . France , as well as other nations affected by this bombing , have continued to seek financial compensation from Libya
UTA Flight 772
UTA Flight 772
France–Libya relations