Region | Palestinian Territories
Blair's plane almost shot at by Israeli jets
Israeli fighter aircraft were scrambled to intercept a jet carrying Tony Blair after it failed to identify itself as friendly.
- Evening Standard
- Published: 23:53 May 23, 2008
- Image Credit: AP
- Tony Blair talks with a Palestinian woman as he holds a traditional Arabic headdress at an exhibit at the Palestinian business conference in the West Bank city of Bethlehem on Thursday.
London: Israeli fighter aircraft were scrambled to intercept a jet carrying Tony Blair after it failed to identify itself as friendly.
It was only after the two warplanes had taken up an attack position that his aircrew radioed to explain who they were and who was aboard.
The former British prime minister, who has served for 11 months as special Middle East envoy, was en route to Israel from a World Economic Forum meeting in Egypt on Thursday morning.
"They were unaware of it while they were on the plane," a spokeswoman for Blair's office in Israel said.
"They didn't hear about it until afterwards."
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