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CNN Live Today
Inspectors Visit Site Mentioned by Powell
Aired February 06, 2003 - 11:05 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.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: Now I want to check on the U.N. weapons inspectors. They were on the hunt again today in Iraq. They visited one of the sites mentioned by Secretary of State Colin Powell in his presentation to the U.N.
Our senior international correspondent Nic Robertson joins us live from Baghdad with the latest -- Nic, hello.
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Daryn. Well, Secretary of State Colin Powell used two satellite photographs from the Ibn al Haithem (ph) site outside of Baghdad. Now, the photographs he used, he said, were demonstrating that Iraqi officials had gone in and cleaned house just in advance of U.N. weapons inspectors arriving at those sites.
That site is one of the sites visited by the -- a half a dozen at least U.N. inspection teams that went out today. We've had no feedback from that inspection team, but we have had more feedback from Iraqi officials about the U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell's address. One official saying that for the U.N. weapons inspectors here to retain their credibility, they must refute what Colin Powell has said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEN. HUSSAM AMIN, IRAQI MONITORING DIRECTORATE: If UNMOVIC and IAEA are keen to prove their independence, their professionalism, they have to say, in brave manner, that all those allegations are lies and prove nothing that Iraq is keeping any proscribed weapons of mass destruction.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTSON: Now, in the newspapers today, the articles calling the Colin Powell speech lies, saying that it was hysterical in its nature, increasing the threats and pressure on Iraq at a time when the United States was mobilizing its forces on the border -- Daryn.
KAGAN: Nic, what kind of access did the average Iraqi citizen have to see Secretary of State Powell's speech yesterday at the U.N.?
ROBERTSON: People here aren't allowed to have satellite dishes to watch television, so they won't have seen any international broadcasts, and Colin Powell's speech wasn't carried on any of the three domestic channels here in Iraq, or one of those being Iraq's own international satellite channels.
People will have been able to hear it, and did hear the speech on some of the international radio broadcasts that they can pick up.
People here do tune in a lot to what's going on around the world to get a different view from the view given to them by their government, the view, of course, given by the government today was that the speech were lies. People got an independent listen if they could speak English, or, in some cases, the Arabic services that they can pick up here on their radios.
KAGAN: Nic Robertson in Baghdad. Nic, thank you so much.
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 February 6, 2003 - 11:05 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: Now I want to check on the U.N. weapons inspectors. They were on the hunt again today in Iraq. They visited one of the sites mentioned by Secretary of State Colin Powell in his presentation to the U.N.
Our senior international correspondent Nic Robertson joins us live from Baghdad with the latest -- Nic, hello.
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Daryn. Well, Secretary of State Colin Powell used two satellite photographs from the Ibn al Haithem (ph) site outside of Baghdad. Now, the photographs he used, he said, were demonstrating that Iraqi officials had gone in and cleaned house just in advance of U.N. weapons inspectors arriving at those sites.
That site is one of the sites visited by the -- a half a dozen at least U.N. inspection teams that went out today. We've had no feedback from that inspection team, but we have had more feedback from Iraqi officials about the U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell's address. One official saying that for the U.N. weapons inspectors here to retain their credibility, they must refute what Colin Powell has said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEN. HUSSAM AMIN, IRAQI MONITORING DIRECTORATE: If UNMOVIC and IAEA are keen to prove their independence, their professionalism, they have to say, in brave manner, that all those allegations are lies and prove nothing that Iraq is keeping any proscribed weapons of mass destruction.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTSON: Now, in the newspapers today, the articles calling the Colin Powell speech lies, saying that it was hysterical in its nature, increasing the threats and pressure on Iraq at a time when the United States was mobilizing its forces on the border -- Daryn.
KAGAN: Nic, what kind of access did the average Iraqi citizen have to see Secretary of State Powell's speech yesterday at the U.N.?
ROBERTSON: People here aren't allowed to have satellite dishes to watch television, so they won't have seen any international broadcasts, and Colin Powell's speech wasn't carried on any of the three domestic channels here in Iraq, or one of those being Iraq's own international satellite channels.
People will have been able to hear it, and did hear the speech on some of the international radio broadcasts that they can pick up.
People here do tune in a lot to what's going on around the world to get a different view from the view given to them by their government, the view, of course, given by the government today was that the speech were lies. People got an independent listen if they could speak English, or, in some cases, the Arabic services that they can pick up here on their radios.
KAGAN: Nic Robertson in Baghdad. Nic, thank you so much.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
