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CNN Live At Daybreak
Russians Demanding Answers
Aired October 29, 2002 - 05:31 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.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Russians are demanding answers. They want to know what chemical agent the government used on a theater full of hostages and why they used it. The mysterious gas killed 115 of the 800 hostages.
We want to go live to Moscow now. Our Matthew Chance is outside the hospital where hundreds of former hostages are still being treated. And I see family members are still there, too -- Matthew.
MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right. Still a lot of people inside the hospitals, as many as 300, just over 300, according to officials of the Russian health ministry. There is also still a great deal of concern about the number of casualties that were caused by this mystery gas that was pumped inside the auditorium of that theater, which was being held, hundreds of people inside being held by Chechen gunmen. That gas pumped inside by Russian special forces in the moments before they burst in and killed the gunmen, freeing many hundreds of hostages.
As I say, still a lot of people in the hospital suffering from the ill effects of inhaling that gas.
U.S. Embassy officials here in Moscow have said they've made some progress in trying to identify what chemical agent it was. They say it's some kind of opiate, something like morphine or something like that that was pumped into the auditorium in quite high concentrations. For their part, though, Russian officials are still refusing to make it clear exactly what substance it was they used. They've described it variously as a special substance or as a sleeping gas.
There has been a lot of speculation about what that is. But this U.S. Embassy report sort of ruling out the possibility that this was some kind of nerve agent, which is, of course, one line of speculation.
Still, many hundreds of people inside the hospitals, as we say. A lot of them still very critical and the death toll in this crisis, you mentioned that figure, 115 dead as a result of the gas, that still could climb higher, according to doctors here -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Matthew, it seems the United States is getting a light more involved in this. Could this become a hot political issue?
CHANCE: I don't think it's going to become an international political issue too much, given that from the outset the governments of the United States, the United Kingdom, other European countries have basically said that they supported the Russian government in their action. They believe they did the right thing, that they didn't have any other option.
That also seems to be the prevailing mood, with some exceptions, here in Russia itself. Most people believe Russia had no choice but to act in this way -- Carol.
COSTELLO: A terrible tragedy.
Matthew Chance, thank you.
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 29, 2002 - 05:31 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Russians are demanding answers. They want to know what chemical agent the government used on a theater full of hostages and why they used it. The mysterious gas killed 115 of the 800 hostages.
We want to go live to Moscow now. Our Matthew Chance is outside the hospital where hundreds of former hostages are still being treated. And I see family members are still there, too -- Matthew.
MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right. Still a lot of people inside the hospitals, as many as 300, just over 300, according to officials of the Russian health ministry. There is also still a great deal of concern about the number of casualties that were caused by this mystery gas that was pumped inside the auditorium of that theater, which was being held, hundreds of people inside being held by Chechen gunmen. That gas pumped inside by Russian special forces in the moments before they burst in and killed the gunmen, freeing many hundreds of hostages.
As I say, still a lot of people in the hospital suffering from the ill effects of inhaling that gas.
U.S. Embassy officials here in Moscow have said they've made some progress in trying to identify what chemical agent it was. They say it's some kind of opiate, something like morphine or something like that that was pumped into the auditorium in quite high concentrations. For their part, though, Russian officials are still refusing to make it clear exactly what substance it was they used. They've described it variously as a special substance or as a sleeping gas.
There has been a lot of speculation about what that is. But this U.S. Embassy report sort of ruling out the possibility that this was some kind of nerve agent, which is, of course, one line of speculation.
Still, many hundreds of people inside the hospitals, as we say. A lot of them still very critical and the death toll in this crisis, you mentioned that figure, 115 dead as a result of the gas, that still could climb higher, according to doctors here -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Matthew, it seems the United States is getting a light more involved in this. Could this become a hot political issue?
CHANCE: I don't think it's going to become an international political issue too much, given that from the outset the governments of the United States, the United Kingdom, other European countries have basically said that they supported the Russian government in their action. They believe they did the right thing, that they didn't have any other option.
That also seems to be the prevailing mood, with some exceptions, here in Russia itself. Most people believe Russia had no choice but to act in this way -- Carol.
COSTELLO: A terrible tragedy.
Matthew Chance, thank you.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
