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UK yet to decide on sending attack helicopters to Libya, says minister

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

London, May 24. IRNA -- The UK government had yet to decide whether to deploy the Apache attack helicopters in Libya, Armed Forces Minister Nick Harvey insisted Tuesday, but refused to rule out what would be a significant escalation of Nato's intervention.

'My understanding is that the French have indeed taken a decision to deploy their attack helicopters in Libya,” Harvey told parliament.

'I state again for the avoidance of all doubt: no such decision has been taken by the United Kingdom. It is an option we are considering and there is absolutely no sense in which it is true to say that we have kept Parliament in the dark about a decision,' he said after repeated questioning.

Apaches have already been used in counter-insurgency operations in Afghanistan to manoeuvre and attack small targets in relatively built-up areas.

Last week, Foreign Secretary William Hague expressed support for Britain's army chief General Sir David Richards in controversially calling to step up the bombing campaign in Libya to include country's infrastructure but denied it was outside the UN mandate.

“Over the last few weeks the (Libyan) regime forces have tried to adapt to what we have done to implement the resolutions. They have made themselves look like the forces of the other side, and have fought in a more asymmetric way,” Hague said.

“In such circumstances it is legitimate for NATO to increase the proportion of targets that are the command and control systems of the regime forces who are harassing and threatening the civilian population,” he argued.

The escalation, which has included sending a team of military advisers to support Benghazi-based rebels, is seen reflecting the growing frustration at the failure to enforce regime change in Libya after two months of bombing.

Several MPs raised concern about the dangers of 'mission creep' leading to a prolonged war following disastrous consequences of military inventions in Iraq and Afghanistan.