Libya, Tony Blair and Gaddafi

COLONEL Gaddafi will shoot at UK troops with weapons supplied with help from Tony Blair, we can reveal. When Mr Blair was Prime Minister he played a major role in a s350million deal to give the evil dictator anti-tank missiles and the latest battlefield radio system. Mr Blair From Page One and then Chancellor Gordon Brown would have gone even further, allowing the supply of the latest Rapier anti-aircraft missiles. The potential consequences for coalition aircraft currently overflying Libya if the deal had gone through are unthinkable. 

The lethal system, named Jernas, fires Rapier II missiles which have a range of 5 miles and a top speed of 1,800mph.Fortunately for Britain and our allies the Libyan leader pulled out of the Rapier contract negotiated when Mr Blair visited Col Gaddafi in Sirte in Libya in 2007. The contracts with missile maker MBDA and General Dynamics UK were signed following negotiations to release the Lockerbie bomber.

MBDA, part-owned by British Aerospace, won a s147m order for anti-tank missiles and a s112m deal for communications gear. 

General Dynamics UK (GDUK) was given a deal worth s85m to supply the Libyan army with Bowman battlefield radios.

Yesterday Mr Blair made no mention of the deal when he said the No Fly Zone came not a moment too soon.But decorated Army colonel and Tory MP Patrick Mercer said: Its a sorry state of affairs that UK forces and the Libyan people are now threatened with arms sold to them by their Prime Minister.From the People