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CNN Live At Daybreak
Airstrikes Target Baghdad Today
Aired April 01, 2003 - 06:33 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: Just a few minutes ago, we heard -- well, there was a press briefing in Baghdad from Iraq's information minister. We want to head live now to Amman, Jordan, and check in with Rym Brahimi.
Rym, this is very confusing, and we're trying to determine what exactly the information minister meant by this. Apparently, he said, coalition forces attacked two buses going into Jordan, and as he put it, there were American shields involved. What can you make of this?
RYM BRAHIMI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Carol, my understanding from the briefing of the minister of information is that in those two buses there were human shields, you know, a number of volunteers from around the world, they call themselves peace volunteers, had been to Baghdad in the weeks building up to the war. And they had been staying in Baghdad at various areas, mainly a lot of facilities that are called vital facilities like water treatment plants or electrical plants. Some of them had been placed, I understand, in also oil refineries. So it depends.
They were all spread out through Baghdad. There are dozens of them, in fact. We met a few when we were in Iraq as well. And they've been slowly coming out of the country. It's not clear whether they have been asked to leave by the Iraqi authorities or whether they have been leaving of their own will.
Now, some of the convoys have come through in the past few days. Apparently, this convoy was made of two buses, including carrying human shields. The buses apparently fell under fire by a U.S. shooting, according to the minister of information of Iraq. He said that some of the American human shields that were on those buses were injured and were taken to a hospital in Rutbar (ph), which is some 100 kilometers, maybe an hour-and-a-half's drive before reaching the border with Jordan on the Iraqi side.
Interestingly, Carol, I know a human shield I spoke to just yesterday said that she had just come on that same road, and there had been a car accident, but they had managed to make it safely, but it was a totally devastated highway.
Just very quickly, Carol, another number of points the minister made, the number of casualties he gave out for Baghdad after overnight bombing, 100 injured, 19 people dead. And he said this morning seven people were injured and three people were killed, or martyred as he says, in this morning's bombings in the capital.
He also said that an Apache helicopter, a U.S. Apache helicopter, had been downed by U.S. forces, and again condemned the United States and Britain for targeting what he said were civilian areas. One place he mentioned south of the Iraqi capital, nine children, he said, were killed in a bombing, including an infant -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Rym Brahimi, thanks for your insight. We appreciate it.
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 April 1, 2003 - 06:33 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Just a few minutes ago, we heard -- well, there was a press briefing in Baghdad from Iraq's information minister. We want to head live now to Amman, Jordan, and check in with Rym Brahimi.
Rym, this is very confusing, and we're trying to determine what exactly the information minister meant by this. Apparently, he said, coalition forces attacked two buses going into Jordan, and as he put it, there were American shields involved. What can you make of this?
RYM BRAHIMI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Carol, my understanding from the briefing of the minister of information is that in those two buses there were human shields, you know, a number of volunteers from around the world, they call themselves peace volunteers, had been to Baghdad in the weeks building up to the war. And they had been staying in Baghdad at various areas, mainly a lot of facilities that are called vital facilities like water treatment plants or electrical plants. Some of them had been placed, I understand, in also oil refineries. So it depends.
They were all spread out through Baghdad. There are dozens of them, in fact. We met a few when we were in Iraq as well. And they've been slowly coming out of the country. It's not clear whether they have been asked to leave by the Iraqi authorities or whether they have been leaving of their own will.
Now, some of the convoys have come through in the past few days. Apparently, this convoy was made of two buses, including carrying human shields. The buses apparently fell under fire by a U.S. shooting, according to the minister of information of Iraq. He said that some of the American human shields that were on those buses were injured and were taken to a hospital in Rutbar (ph), which is some 100 kilometers, maybe an hour-and-a-half's drive before reaching the border with Jordan on the Iraqi side.
Interestingly, Carol, I know a human shield I spoke to just yesterday said that she had just come on that same road, and there had been a car accident, but they had managed to make it safely, but it was a totally devastated highway.
Just very quickly, Carol, another number of points the minister made, the number of casualties he gave out for Baghdad after overnight bombing, 100 injured, 19 people dead. And he said this morning seven people were injured and three people were killed, or martyred as he says, in this morning's bombings in the capital.
He also said that an Apache helicopter, a U.S. Apache helicopter, had been downed by U.S. forces, and again condemned the United States and Britain for targeting what he said were civilian areas. One place he mentioned south of the Iraqi capital, nine children, he said, were killed in a bombing, including an infant -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Rym Brahimi, thanks for your insight. We appreciate it.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.
