This photo included in court documents obtained by The Associate Press, an image intercepted in a Sept. 16, 2006 e-mail, shows samples of Chinese-made assault rifles offered by an alleged Italian arms trafficking ring in a huge attempted sale of arms to Libya. Authorities shadowed the yearlong negotiations between Libyan officials and a local group of black-market arms dealers, eventually moving in to arrest the Italians and break up a US$64 million deal, which would have put hundreds of thousands of Chinese-made assault rifles in Tripoli's hands. According to court documents obtained by The Associated Press, at least part of the shipment was expected to go to third countries. Experts say the arms were likely destined for troubled African hot spots, such as Chad and Sudan, underscoring Tripoli's bid to increase its influence on the continent as it returns to the world stage. (AP Photo/Handout))

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