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CNN Live At Daybreak
Clearing Weather Benefits Coalition Forces
Aired March 28, 2003 - 06:10 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: Want to go to the Pentagon now and talk with Chris Plante, because, as you heard Bill say, the weather is very clear and of course that might to speak of another bombing run.
Chris, what can you tell us from the Pentagon?
CHRIS PLANTE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well that's right, Carol. U.S. military officials are telling us that with the clearing of the weather and the sandstorms being over that they're putting their surveillance and reconnaissance aircraft in the air. And they're pinpointing the locations of Republican Guard tanks and units and that we can expect, over the next several days, very intense bombing of tanks and Republican Guard divisions around Baghdad.
We can also expect that the 101st Airborne, which hasn't really been in the thick of the fight so far, will take to the air with their Apache helicopters, which are very effective also at killing tanks on the ground. So stepped up attacks on the Republican Guard in the next few days, to some extent, courtesy of the weather and the updated intelligence information.
Also hearing from officials there that there have been substantial cruise missile strikes in a remote area in northeastern Iraq, the area of Korma (ph), where the administration and military intelligence believe there are terrorists operating in camps up there. This is an area, you may remember, where they believed terrorists were involved in the production of chemical weapons, including risin, which was seen in a raid of an apartment in London sometime back. So Navy cruise missiles pounding these camps in northeastern Iraq where it is believed there is terrorist activity going on.
A lot of intensive bombing of Republican Guard units expected in the next couple of days.
And also in the south a little bit of good news. The oil wells that were set on fire by Iraqi forces as they were moving out of the area there, nine of them ignited by Iraqi troops, many more sabotaged but didn't go up in flames, some of them damaged. Six of the nine oil wells that were on fire have been put out. Three of those oil wells still up in flames, but allied forces, coalition forces working to extinguish those fires there also -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Chris, I wanted to ask you about those oil well fires, because before this thing started, it was suspected that many, many oil wells would be set on fire. Have there been less than expected set afire? PLANTE: Much less than expected. The expectation was, and we were getting reports through U.S. intelligence long before any of the military activity began, that dozens, scores, perhaps even hundreds of these wells had been wired or in some way rigged for a sabotage so that they could be destroyed or set on fire as the troops pulled out of the area. It turned out that only nine of them were actually set on fire, which the coalition spokesmen were certainly pleased to hear.
This is, in large part, because of preemptive action that was taken by special forces units that went in and prevented the Iraqi troops from creating a greater disaster down there. Of course the administration has said that the economic viability of Iraq after this action is dependent, to a very large extent, on the oil industry being healthy. So it is a big deal -- Carol.
COSTELLO: All right. Chris Plante reporting live from the Pentagon this morning.
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 March 28, 2003 - 06:10 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Want to go to the Pentagon now and talk with Chris Plante, because, as you heard Bill say, the weather is very clear and of course that might to speak of another bombing run.
Chris, what can you tell us from the Pentagon?
CHRIS PLANTE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well that's right, Carol. U.S. military officials are telling us that with the clearing of the weather and the sandstorms being over that they're putting their surveillance and reconnaissance aircraft in the air. And they're pinpointing the locations of Republican Guard tanks and units and that we can expect, over the next several days, very intense bombing of tanks and Republican Guard divisions around Baghdad.
We can also expect that the 101st Airborne, which hasn't really been in the thick of the fight so far, will take to the air with their Apache helicopters, which are very effective also at killing tanks on the ground. So stepped up attacks on the Republican Guard in the next few days, to some extent, courtesy of the weather and the updated intelligence information.
Also hearing from officials there that there have been substantial cruise missile strikes in a remote area in northeastern Iraq, the area of Korma (ph), where the administration and military intelligence believe there are terrorists operating in camps up there. This is an area, you may remember, where they believed terrorists were involved in the production of chemical weapons, including risin, which was seen in a raid of an apartment in London sometime back. So Navy cruise missiles pounding these camps in northeastern Iraq where it is believed there is terrorist activity going on.
A lot of intensive bombing of Republican Guard units expected in the next couple of days.
And also in the south a little bit of good news. The oil wells that were set on fire by Iraqi forces as they were moving out of the area there, nine of them ignited by Iraqi troops, many more sabotaged but didn't go up in flames, some of them damaged. Six of the nine oil wells that were on fire have been put out. Three of those oil wells still up in flames, but allied forces, coalition forces working to extinguish those fires there also -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Chris, I wanted to ask you about those oil well fires, because before this thing started, it was suspected that many, many oil wells would be set on fire. Have there been less than expected set afire? PLANTE: Much less than expected. The expectation was, and we were getting reports through U.S. intelligence long before any of the military activity began, that dozens, scores, perhaps even hundreds of these wells had been wired or in some way rigged for a sabotage so that they could be destroyed or set on fire as the troops pulled out of the area. It turned out that only nine of them were actually set on fire, which the coalition spokesmen were certainly pleased to hear.
This is, in large part, because of preemptive action that was taken by special forces units that went in and prevented the Iraqi troops from creating a greater disaster down there. Of course the administration has said that the economic viability of Iraq after this action is dependent, to a very large extent, on the oil industry being healthy. So it is a big deal -- Carol.
COSTELLO: All right. Chris Plante reporting live from the Pentagon this morning.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
