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Iraq's Referendum Meant To Send Strong Message to U.S.

Aired October 16, 2002 - 11:06   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.


LEON HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Jane is standing by in Baghdad. We saw her moments ago. And Jane is there the day after this referendum, the so-called election there, in which Saddam Hussein was basically given something of a thumbs-up by his own people, who are perhaps under a threat of who knows -- whatever.
But Jane is standing now in Baghdad, and we'd love to get her perspective on all of this from there -- Jane.

JANE ARRAF, CNN BAGHDAD BUREAU CHIEF: Hi, Leon.

Well, you are absolutely right. That vote was meant to send a very strong message to the United States, and that was really clear throughout this referendum.

It was a huge, huge organized show of support for the Iraqi leader, and also specifically a message to U.S. President Bush that the Iraqi people were behind Saddam Hussein.

Now, obviously, that 100 percent approval rating that Saddam Hussein came out with isn't necessarily accurate, but it is an indication here that the leadership is still strong enough to put on that sort of event -- Leon.

HARRIS: And yet, Jane, we've also heard, though, that there is some sort of diplomacy at work here behind the scenes, because we are getting signals that the Iraqi delegation at the U.N. is beginning to at least begin making some sort of -- they're backtracking something to a degree here on this -- the mandate that may be coming from the Security Council.

What do you make of that happening, while you were also seeing this so-called election or referendum taking place over there in Baghdad?

ARRAF: You are absolutely right. It's very much, as it usually is, a two-track approach. One is that implicit threat that the government here is still strong and can marshal enough forces to provide some sort of opposition to any U.S. military action. The other is that ongoing diplomatic push, and officials here are taking quite a lot at heart from the French position.

In fact, Izzat Ibrahim, who is Saddam Hussein's right-hand man, in announcing the vote results this morning said that it refers specifically to the French position. And he also indicated, as you say, that Iraq is willing to be flexible; that if there is a new resolution, Iraq will deal with that when it comes, cross the bridge when it comes to it.

Now, that may not sound like much, but by Iraqi terms, that really was a leap forward, and the same thing that they've indicated in the recent letter to Hans Blix, saying they want to solve all of these problems. That is certainly an indication that they are willing to be a little bit more flexible -- Leon.

HARRIS: And one would have to wonder if that means that the message being sent from this side is actually getting through to that side. And we'll talk about that sometime down the road.

Jane Arraf in Baghdad, stay with us, and we'll get back to you later on.

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 16, 2002 - 11:06   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
LEON HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Jane is standing by in Baghdad. We saw her moments ago. And Jane is there the day after this referendum, the so-called election there, in which Saddam Hussein was basically given something of a thumbs-up by his own people, who are perhaps under a threat of who knows -- whatever.
But Jane is standing now in Baghdad, and we'd love to get her perspective on all of this from there -- Jane.

JANE ARRAF, CNN BAGHDAD BUREAU CHIEF: Hi, Leon.

Well, you are absolutely right. That vote was meant to send a very strong message to the United States, and that was really clear throughout this referendum.

It was a huge, huge organized show of support for the Iraqi leader, and also specifically a message to U.S. President Bush that the Iraqi people were behind Saddam Hussein.

Now, obviously, that 100 percent approval rating that Saddam Hussein came out with isn't necessarily accurate, but it is an indication here that the leadership is still strong enough to put on that sort of event -- Leon.

HARRIS: And yet, Jane, we've also heard, though, that there is some sort of diplomacy at work here behind the scenes, because we are getting signals that the Iraqi delegation at the U.N. is beginning to at least begin making some sort of -- they're backtracking something to a degree here on this -- the mandate that may be coming from the Security Council.

What do you make of that happening, while you were also seeing this so-called election or referendum taking place over there in Baghdad?

ARRAF: You are absolutely right. It's very much, as it usually is, a two-track approach. One is that implicit threat that the government here is still strong and can marshal enough forces to provide some sort of opposition to any U.S. military action. The other is that ongoing diplomatic push, and officials here are taking quite a lot at heart from the French position.

In fact, Izzat Ibrahim, who is Saddam Hussein's right-hand man, in announcing the vote results this morning said that it refers specifically to the French position. And he also indicated, as you say, that Iraq is willing to be flexible; that if there is a new resolution, Iraq will deal with that when it comes, cross the bridge when it comes to it.

Now, that may not sound like much, but by Iraqi terms, that really was a leap forward, and the same thing that they've indicated in the recent letter to Hans Blix, saying they want to solve all of these problems. That is certainly an indication that they are willing to be a little bit more flexible -- Leon.

HARRIS: And one would have to wonder if that means that the message being sent from this side is actually getting through to that side. And we'll talk about that sometime down the road.

Jane Arraf in Baghdad, stay with us, and we'll get back to you later on.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.