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CNN Live At Daybreak
Hans Blix Delaying Return of His Team
Aired October 04, 2002 - 07:32 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: While the rhetoric continues over how to handle a confrontation with Iraq, Iraq's vice president is suggesting Saddam Hussein and President Bush stage a duel with seconds to avoid a war. The White House declined. In Washington today, the chief U.N. weapons inspector is briefing U.S. officials on the deal to send weapons inspectors back into Iraq, but at the request of U.S. and Britain, Hans Blix is delaying the return of his team until he gets new instructions from the U.N. Security Council.
How is all this playing out in Baghdad?
Let's ask Jane Arraf, who joins us from the Iraqi capital -- good morning, Jane.
JANE ARRAF, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Paula.
Well, it's a hot and dusty day here in Baghdad, almost 100 degrees. And there's a sandstorm coming up. So it's pretty quiet in the capital on this Friday holiday.
The government, though, has been busy trying to get its message across. And its message is that at the Security Council those countries that have veto power -- Russia, China and France -- had better watch out.
Now, I'm going to show you this government newspaper. It's "Al- Thawrah," the Baath Party newspaper, has the obligatory picture of the Iraqi president and a headline saying that the world is denouncing U.S. aggression. It's warning those countries, Iraq's trading partners -- China, Russia and France -- that they should be brave enough to stand up to the United States and that they can't ignore their strategic and vital interests. That means, of course, money, those billions of dollars in oil contracts is what that's referring to.
Another message from the government in the main Friday sermon at the Al-Hanifa Mosque. That's the main mosque in the district of Agamea (ph). The imam was telling people gathered to pray that Arab rulers had better watch their step, as well. The imam, Abdul Razak al-Saadi (ph) said that if the Arab rulers chose to side with the United States, then they would be relegated to the dustbin of history. He actually told the worshipers that if that happened, they would be turned, the Arab rulers, into tea boys and dust sweepers -- Paula.
ZAHN: Let's come back to the other story that's gotten a lot of attention here, and that is the vice president of Iraq challenging a duel between Saddam Hussein and President George Bush. What is that all about?
ARRAF: Well, that was in response, as you remember, to the White House comments that actually the best way to solve this wasn't to get engaged in a costly war. It was just to get someone to shoot the Iraqi president. Now, if you compare those two, this proposal for a duel is perhaps a more genteel solution. That's where that's coming from.
But on the more serious side, the backdrop there is this is seen as a very personal fight, that this isn't about disarmament, it's actually a war between Bush elder and junior and President Saddam Hussein -- Paula.
ZAHN: I guess at least on the perception of the Iraqi vice president.
We're going to leave it there at the moment.
Jane Arraf, thanks so much for the live update.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired October 4, 2002 - 07:32 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: While the rhetoric continues over how to handle a confrontation with Iraq, Iraq's vice president is suggesting Saddam Hussein and President Bush stage a duel with seconds to avoid a war. The White House declined. In Washington today, the chief U.N. weapons inspector is briefing U.S. officials on the deal to send weapons inspectors back into Iraq, but at the request of U.S. and Britain, Hans Blix is delaying the return of his team until he gets new instructions from the U.N. Security Council.
How is all this playing out in Baghdad?
Let's ask Jane Arraf, who joins us from the Iraqi capital -- good morning, Jane.
JANE ARRAF, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Paula.
Well, it's a hot and dusty day here in Baghdad, almost 100 degrees. And there's a sandstorm coming up. So it's pretty quiet in the capital on this Friday holiday.
The government, though, has been busy trying to get its message across. And its message is that at the Security Council those countries that have veto power -- Russia, China and France -- had better watch out.
Now, I'm going to show you this government newspaper. It's "Al- Thawrah," the Baath Party newspaper, has the obligatory picture of the Iraqi president and a headline saying that the world is denouncing U.S. aggression. It's warning those countries, Iraq's trading partners -- China, Russia and France -- that they should be brave enough to stand up to the United States and that they can't ignore their strategic and vital interests. That means, of course, money, those billions of dollars in oil contracts is what that's referring to.
Another message from the government in the main Friday sermon at the Al-Hanifa Mosque. That's the main mosque in the district of Agamea (ph). The imam was telling people gathered to pray that Arab rulers had better watch their step, as well. The imam, Abdul Razak al-Saadi (ph) said that if the Arab rulers chose to side with the United States, then they would be relegated to the dustbin of history. He actually told the worshipers that if that happened, they would be turned, the Arab rulers, into tea boys and dust sweepers -- Paula.
ZAHN: Let's come back to the other story that's gotten a lot of attention here, and that is the vice president of Iraq challenging a duel between Saddam Hussein and President George Bush. What is that all about?
ARRAF: Well, that was in response, as you remember, to the White House comments that actually the best way to solve this wasn't to get engaged in a costly war. It was just to get someone to shoot the Iraqi president. Now, if you compare those two, this proposal for a duel is perhaps a more genteel solution. That's where that's coming from.
But on the more serious side, the backdrop there is this is seen as a very personal fight, that this isn't about disarmament, it's actually a war between Bush elder and junior and President Saddam Hussein -- Paula.
ZAHN: I guess at least on the perception of the Iraqi vice president.
We're going to leave it there at the moment.
Jane Arraf, thanks so much for the live update.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
