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CNN Live Today

Talk with Member of the ICRC

Aired March 31, 2003 - 11:35   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.


BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Leon, we know there's a handful of Americans now being held, a handful of British, too, being held by the Iraqis as prisoners of war, and Central Command says already they have 4,000 prisoners of war from the Iraqi side. It's the job of the International Committee for the Red Cross to process each member, each prisoner of war on both sides.
Tamara Al Faira has been with us from the past two weeks running. She's with the Red Cross here in Kuwait City. And today, on the American side, you got in to see the Iraqi POWs.

The condition there was what?

TAMARA ALRIFAI, INTL. CMTE. RED CROSS: Yes, we did. A team went in today to a camp of the coalition forces, where Iraqi prisoners of war are detained. We have managed to visit a few of them, around 100. This is only the first day of a visit that will probably take days, because the total number we were given for that camp by the coalition is 3,000.

HEMMER: Three thousand in that camp alone. So if you did 100 today, how long would it take before you processed the entire group?

ALRIFAI: Today was a special case. The first day is always special, because we have to tour the entire premises to hold what we call initial talks with the detaining authorities, to explain to the POWs what we do and why we're there, namely we're not there to liberate them to. We're there look at the conditions of detention and look at the way they're being treated, and approach the authorities on what we see.

HEMMER: And what were the conditions as best you can describe to us?

ALRIFAI: This is exactly what we approach the authorities for. This is something that the International Committee of the Red Cross discusses strictly with the authorities.

HEMMER: So no information can be given out.

ALRIFAI: Absolutely none.

HEMMER: What does it tell you about the fact that the Americans have allowed you to visit the Iraqi POWs, but there has not been much headway made in Baghdad?

ALRIFAI: Just as a reminder, both parties had said they would respect the Geneva Conventions. What we know is that so far, the coalition has respected the third Geneva Convention, namely article 126, saying that the ICRC should have access to the POWs.

We're still actively pursuing the dialogue with the Iraqi authorities. I know that our office in Baghdad is very actively engaged in a dialogue regarding this.

HEMMER: So there are discussions in Baghdad ongoing. But what is the indication you're getting from the Iraqis right now about when those visits will take place?

ALRIFAI: We don't have an indication yet. But it does constructive as far as we understand, and from our office in Baghdad. They are directly doing the talks with the highest authorities there.

HEMMER: Is there concern though within the Red Cross in Baghdad that that visit or those visits may not happen anytime soon?

ALRIFAI: We should not go along those lines. No, we are working on making those visits happen.

HEMMER: Reporter: today, when you were out on the American side, you walk in there, you said you do questioning, you do registration -- at what point would you ever take your information back to Baghdad to notify families on the Iraqi side? Or is that part of your job?

ALRIFAI: Oh, absolutely, yes. The first thing that happens is we go in and need to register everybody, put them on our lists, so we really have a thorough name by name list of who is there. Then we -- as soon as we can actually, we should start notifying the families through what we call a Red Cross message system, whereby they're allowed to write their news to the families, and then we distribute them. We haven't started doing that yet.

As I told you, first we register everybody. Then we hold what we call interviews without witness with those people. We have to see every POW alone and talk to him in private about what he's going through.

HEMMER: Have you ever been an indication that the Americans will not cooperate?

ALRIFAI: Well, this is a difficult question, considering that since the beginning, we were told that the Geneva Conventions would be respected.

HEMMER: But you got in today.

ALRIFAI: Yeah, but there is nothing.

HEMMER: They have yet to do that on the Iraqi side.

ALRIFAI: There is nothing in the Geneva Convention that sets a time limit as to when the ICRC is allowed in. The only limit, the only obligation, is for the ICRC to actually be in. HEMMER: Quickly here, when you're talking about 3,000 to 4,000 prisoners of war, I have to think the demands in terms of upkeep and care, food and water has to be demanding. Do you believe right now that the Americans adequately have enough supplies to do that job.

ALRIFAI: It's their obligation to do it, yes. And this is part of the things that we check when we are visiting them. The premise is, how many bathrooms, how many showers, how much space, square meters per person, how many food rations per person, how much access to water, how much access to water, how much access exercising and fresh air. This is the kind of thing we check on.

HEMMER: Will you be back tomorrow?

ALRIFAI: Oh, absolutely. We're going to keep going there everyday until everybody is registered and visited.

HEMMER: Tamara Alrifai. We'll talk again, I'm certain. The International Committee for the Red Cross, thank you very 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 March 31, 2003 - 11:35   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Leon, we know there's a handful of Americans now being held, a handful of British, too, being held by the Iraqis as prisoners of war, and Central Command says already they have 4,000 prisoners of war from the Iraqi side. It's the job of the International Committee for the Red Cross to process each member, each prisoner of war on both sides.
Tamara Al Faira has been with us from the past two weeks running. She's with the Red Cross here in Kuwait City. And today, on the American side, you got in to see the Iraqi POWs.

The condition there was what?

TAMARA ALRIFAI, INTL. CMTE. RED CROSS: Yes, we did. A team went in today to a camp of the coalition forces, where Iraqi prisoners of war are detained. We have managed to visit a few of them, around 100. This is only the first day of a visit that will probably take days, because the total number we were given for that camp by the coalition is 3,000.

HEMMER: Three thousand in that camp alone. So if you did 100 today, how long would it take before you processed the entire group?

ALRIFAI: Today was a special case. The first day is always special, because we have to tour the entire premises to hold what we call initial talks with the detaining authorities, to explain to the POWs what we do and why we're there, namely we're not there to liberate them to. We're there look at the conditions of detention and look at the way they're being treated, and approach the authorities on what we see.

HEMMER: And what were the conditions as best you can describe to us?

ALRIFAI: This is exactly what we approach the authorities for. This is something that the International Committee of the Red Cross discusses strictly with the authorities.

HEMMER: So no information can be given out.

ALRIFAI: Absolutely none.

HEMMER: What does it tell you about the fact that the Americans have allowed you to visit the Iraqi POWs, but there has not been much headway made in Baghdad?

ALRIFAI: Just as a reminder, both parties had said they would respect the Geneva Conventions. What we know is that so far, the coalition has respected the third Geneva Convention, namely article 126, saying that the ICRC should have access to the POWs.

We're still actively pursuing the dialogue with the Iraqi authorities. I know that our office in Baghdad is very actively engaged in a dialogue regarding this.

HEMMER: So there are discussions in Baghdad ongoing. But what is the indication you're getting from the Iraqis right now about when those visits will take place?

ALRIFAI: We don't have an indication yet. But it does constructive as far as we understand, and from our office in Baghdad. They are directly doing the talks with the highest authorities there.

HEMMER: Is there concern though within the Red Cross in Baghdad that that visit or those visits may not happen anytime soon?

ALRIFAI: We should not go along those lines. No, we are working on making those visits happen.

HEMMER: Reporter: today, when you were out on the American side, you walk in there, you said you do questioning, you do registration -- at what point would you ever take your information back to Baghdad to notify families on the Iraqi side? Or is that part of your job?

ALRIFAI: Oh, absolutely, yes. The first thing that happens is we go in and need to register everybody, put them on our lists, so we really have a thorough name by name list of who is there. Then we -- as soon as we can actually, we should start notifying the families through what we call a Red Cross message system, whereby they're allowed to write their news to the families, and then we distribute them. We haven't started doing that yet.

As I told you, first we register everybody. Then we hold what we call interviews without witness with those people. We have to see every POW alone and talk to him in private about what he's going through.

HEMMER: Have you ever been an indication that the Americans will not cooperate?

ALRIFAI: Well, this is a difficult question, considering that since the beginning, we were told that the Geneva Conventions would be respected.

HEMMER: But you got in today.

ALRIFAI: Yeah, but there is nothing.

HEMMER: They have yet to do that on the Iraqi side.

ALRIFAI: There is nothing in the Geneva Convention that sets a time limit as to when the ICRC is allowed in. The only limit, the only obligation, is for the ICRC to actually be in. HEMMER: Quickly here, when you're talking about 3,000 to 4,000 prisoners of war, I have to think the demands in terms of upkeep and care, food and water has to be demanding. Do you believe right now that the Americans adequately have enough supplies to do that job.

ALRIFAI: It's their obligation to do it, yes. And this is part of the things that we check when we are visiting them. The premise is, how many bathrooms, how many showers, how much space, square meters per person, how many food rations per person, how much access to water, how much access to water, how much access exercising and fresh air. This is the kind of thing we check on.

HEMMER: Will you be back tomorrow?

ALRIFAI: Oh, absolutely. We're going to keep going there everyday until everybody is registered and visited.

HEMMER: Tamara Alrifai. We'll talk again, I'm certain. The International Committee for the Red Cross, thank you very 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