Thatcher mastermind behind Libyan rebels’ PR offensive

THE LIBYAN REBELS’ propaganda war is being masterminded by Margaret Thatcher’s close friend and former top media adviser, Tim Bell.

Tim Bell guided Thatcher to three successive general election victories. In 1984, Bell was seconded to Britain's National Coal Board to advise on media strategy at the start of the miners' strike.

He has lobbied on behalf of the Saudi Arabian Government and performed public relations work for Chilean dictator General Pinochet, another dear friend of Margaret Thatcher.

Baron Bell: War . . . What is it good for?

Bell was knighted in 1990 by a very grateful Thatcher and made a life peer by Tony Blair as 'Baron Bell of Belgravia' in 1998.

In addition to working for the prospective rulers of oil-rich Libya, the National Transitional Council, Baron Bell’s Chime Communications plc has also kept its contract with the Bahrain Government, internationally criticised for human rights violations in suppressing its own ‘Arab Spring’ uprising. Bell has additionally advised the governments of Iraq and Yemen.

Now Chime is looking forward to profiting from more unrest in the Middle East and Africa. Bell told Bloomberg:

I see this as a significant area of growth but I don’t know when; it will take time. As countries rebuild, people will start to invest money.