London Mayor Ken Livingstone said today he was told he was targeted in a loyalist murder plot in the 1980s.
Mr Livingstone, known as "Red Ken" when he was the left-wing leader of the Greater London Council from 1981 to 1986, infuriated loyalists by publicly supporting republicans.
Former UDA paramilitary Michael Stone (48) told London's Evening Standardnewspaper a hitman stalked Mr Livingstone for two nights but that an assassination attempt was called off at the last minute.
The gunman, sent from Belfast to London, had disguised himself as a jogger and watched Mr Livingstone's movements.
But the plans were dropped amid fears that the killing would lead to "horrific" political repercussions, said Stone, who has served time in prison for murdering Catholics.
Mr Livingstone, who was elected as London's first mayor in 2000, said a team of police officers had been sent to warn him of the plot.
"I was kept informed and some measures were taken at the time," he told a London press conference, adding: "The fact that some people do not like me is not a surprise".
AFP