More British soldiers will die in friendly-fire tragedies because of Government failings, one of the country's most senior soldiers has warned.
As war with Iraq looms nearer, Lt Col Andrew Larpent said he fears a repeat of the Gulf War disaster which claimed the lives of nine of his soldiers, including three from Tyneside.
Now retired, Lt Col Larpent accused the Government of failing its troops in regard to safety measures on the ground.
In a letter to a national newspaper, he said: "The fact that no technical protection system has yet been introduced to enable Allied aircrafts to identify Allied ground troops is a failure that is difficult to excuse.
"The MoD's answer, that they are working on it, is unacceptable and I believe they must be challenged on this issue.
"Politicians should consider very carefully the risk they could be imposing on our troops."
His warning was welcomed by Mel Gillespie, whose son Richard, 19, was killed in the Gulf friendly-fire accident alongside Kevin Leech, 20, of Prudhoe, Northumberland, and Peter Atkinson, 19, of Birtley.
They died with six others when a US pilot blasted their armoured vehicle with anti-tank missiles at the height of the 1991 conflict.
From his home in Tynemouth, North Tyneside, Mr Gillespie said: "It is absolutely vital that something is done about the dangers of friendly fire, especially with the threat of a war with Iraq so real.
"Since my son was killed, nothing has been done to improve safety measures for ground troops.
"The equipment is in a shambles and the lives of hundreds of youngsters are being put at unnecessary risk.
"The British Army is staffed by highly-trained officers and damn good soldiers but they are let down by the people at the MoD."
Blaydon MP John McWilliam, a former member of the Commons Defence Committee, has been campaigning to curb the risks of friendly-fire since the tragedy.
He said: "I would be very unhappy to see British troops in armoured vehicles with American air cover without a proper identification system.
"The technology is there. It is a political problem between us and the Americans over standards. It needs to be sorted."
A report by the Commons Public Accounts Committee last year criticised the MoD for not developing a full combat identification system to reduce the risk of friendly-fire deaths.
