Most important was French reaction to the attack. Gaddafi had possibly believed that, due to the upcoming French legislative elections, Mitterrand would be reluctant to start a new risky and costly expedition to save Habré; this evaluation proved wrong, as what the French President could not politically risk was to show weakness towards Libyan aggression. As a result, on 14 February Opération Epervier was started, bringing 1,200 French troops and several squadrons of Jaguars to Chad. On 16 February, to send a clear message to Gaddafi, the French Air Force bombed Libya's Ouadi Doum airbase. Libya retaliated the next day when a Libyan Tu-22 bombed the N'Djamena Airport, causing minimal damage.