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American Morning
Analysis of CENTCOM Briefing; Statement from Iraqi Information Minister
Aired April 05, 2003 - 08:20 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: On the 17th day, U.S. tanks rumbled into the heart of Baghdad. That's the message today from CENTCOM, although they're cautioning down there in Qatar that no victory speech is appropriate at this point. But moving in daylight in the heart of Baghdad, a strong indication from CENTCOM, in their words, that troops on the U.S. can move into Baghdad when and where they choose.
I'm Bill Hemmer.
Welcome to SATURDAY LIVE again here in Kuwait City.
Also watching the situation in Baghdad. On LBC, the Lebanese Broadcasting Corporation, Mohammed Saeed al-Sahhaf, the information minister, while CENTCOM was delivering his briefing today, Sahhaf was delivering this message attributed to Saddam Hussein. It happened a few moments ago. We'll listen. This is the message today in Baghdad.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MOHAMMED SAEED AL-SAHHAF, IRAQI INFORMATION MINISTER (THROUGH TRANSLATOR): Nasiriya and Faw and the city of Modun (ph) and the eternal Basra was the position and the stand of its people. And on the outskirts of al-Hillah, a defense on the periphery of Kut, whose main, the apples of the eyes and the source of pleasure in the souls. And with despite all of that, the enemy found itself lost and astonished facing a flood of defeat and confrontation by people who believe and are willing to sacrifice.
They thought that they would be able to heal their wounds if they tried to go against Baghdad of Iman (ph), of conviction. It is natural that whenever they see the defense of Baghdad, defiant, the more they will try to focus and that's how the enemy weakened its own capabilities on the other axises or made them less than before. And therefore your duty now is to exhaust the enemy and to add to their wounds and to deprive them from what they gained on the ground at where you are, even if they were symbolic gains. And some are very secondary. So that you shake their strings more and more and you'll shake them more and you accelerate its defeat, with their defeat in and around Baghdad.
We say this, not to so that you lift the pressure off Baghdad, although it is legitimate in a situation like that because it's the dear capital of Iraq. But instead we say this, we tell you that what they came with to Baghdad until now is less than what Baghdad can bear, your Baghdad can bear. And god will protect Baghdad as a symbol for virtue and belief in jihad, even if it was attacked or if it was subjected to added pressure.
But to harm the enemy more and more, go against the enemy and destroy the enemy. And follow the plans that you got in writing. God is great. May the criminals lose. Signed by Saddam Hussein on the 3rd of Saffar (ph), 1424 Hejri (ph), corresponding to the 4th of April of the year 2003.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HEMMER: All right, that's a statement from Baghdad just a few moments ago. A number of messages in there, including the enemy forces -- referring to the U.S. right now -- are on Baghdad, they say, but they have weakened in other parts of the country. God will protect Baghdad, the message from Mohammed Saeed al-Sahhaf. And attributing all this speech yet again to the Iraqi leader, Saddam Hussein, and urging the army as well as regular Iraqis to step up their attacks on invaders.
We'll keep track of what's happening in Baghdad. Also watching what's happening down at CENTCOM. A long briefing today about the operations the U.S. have now conducted and again, as I mentioned before, day 17 of Operation Iraqi Freedom. U.S. tanks now moving into the heart of Baghdad earlier today.
Where they are right now, whether they've moved back out of the city, we cannot say for certain, but we will check in with our embedded reporters. We have a whole lot more for you, when we continue, right after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HEMMER: It is Saturday morning and good afternoon from Kuwait City.
I'm Bill Hemmer.
Heidi Collins back at the CNN Center -- Heidi, good morning to you, as well.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to you, Bill.
Thank you.
We want to begin this morning with an interesting story from one of our embedded reporters.
Walking through a school is an inspiring thing to do in peacetime, but war changes even the simplest things.
CNN's Ryan Chilcote went along with the 101st Airborne to search a place that's supposed to have desks and books and blackboards in it, but it had much more than that.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RYAN CHILCOTE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Outside a Najaf high school, Specialist Kim Kahr (ph) works a crowd eager to help with one of the most effective weapons of all, fluency in Arabic.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There are 50 missiles inside there.
CHILCOTE: Moments later, the same guys who say they were forced to stash the weapons by Fedayeen militia lead Noslak (ph) Battalion's Bravo Company into the school halls. Apparently believing American soldiers would never target a school or go looking around in one, the weapons, a hodgepodge from the world's best makers to the homemade, lie out in the open.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, yes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: One, two, three, four, five, six, seven hand grenades.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's a good one.
CHILCOTE: Another room reveals rocket propelled grenades with the fuses ready to go. For the American Joe, it's a picture perfect moment. Everyone wants in on the action. A third room reveals mortars. It has all the smell of a successful hunt.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's 10 pounds of explosives to take care of there.
CHILCOTE: Taking away Saddam's weapons has the engineers, whose job it is to blow it all up, salivating. These I.D. cards may prove to be the biggest find of all. The Fedayeen are already captured with their I.D.s or weapons.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They seem to be not having it on them when they're caught or when they're questioned, but they seem to have a cache somewhere. There's probably plenty of other caches that we know about.
CHILCOTE: When the work was done, the school was gun-free, something those slack soldiers hope to repeat one building at a time.
Ryan Chilcote, CNN, with the 101st Airborne, Najaf, Iraq.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Information Minister>
Aired April 5, 2003 - 08:20 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: On the 17th day, U.S. tanks rumbled into the heart of Baghdad. That's the message today from CENTCOM, although they're cautioning down there in Qatar that no victory speech is appropriate at this point. But moving in daylight in the heart of Baghdad, a strong indication from CENTCOM, in their words, that troops on the U.S. can move into Baghdad when and where they choose.
I'm Bill Hemmer.
Welcome to SATURDAY LIVE again here in Kuwait City.
Also watching the situation in Baghdad. On LBC, the Lebanese Broadcasting Corporation, Mohammed Saeed al-Sahhaf, the information minister, while CENTCOM was delivering his briefing today, Sahhaf was delivering this message attributed to Saddam Hussein. It happened a few moments ago. We'll listen. This is the message today in Baghdad.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MOHAMMED SAEED AL-SAHHAF, IRAQI INFORMATION MINISTER (THROUGH TRANSLATOR): Nasiriya and Faw and the city of Modun (ph) and the eternal Basra was the position and the stand of its people. And on the outskirts of al-Hillah, a defense on the periphery of Kut, whose main, the apples of the eyes and the source of pleasure in the souls. And with despite all of that, the enemy found itself lost and astonished facing a flood of defeat and confrontation by people who believe and are willing to sacrifice.
They thought that they would be able to heal their wounds if they tried to go against Baghdad of Iman (ph), of conviction. It is natural that whenever they see the defense of Baghdad, defiant, the more they will try to focus and that's how the enemy weakened its own capabilities on the other axises or made them less than before. And therefore your duty now is to exhaust the enemy and to add to their wounds and to deprive them from what they gained on the ground at where you are, even if they were symbolic gains. And some are very secondary. So that you shake their strings more and more and you'll shake them more and you accelerate its defeat, with their defeat in and around Baghdad.
We say this, not to so that you lift the pressure off Baghdad, although it is legitimate in a situation like that because it's the dear capital of Iraq. But instead we say this, we tell you that what they came with to Baghdad until now is less than what Baghdad can bear, your Baghdad can bear. And god will protect Baghdad as a symbol for virtue and belief in jihad, even if it was attacked or if it was subjected to added pressure.
But to harm the enemy more and more, go against the enemy and destroy the enemy. And follow the plans that you got in writing. God is great. May the criminals lose. Signed by Saddam Hussein on the 3rd of Saffar (ph), 1424 Hejri (ph), corresponding to the 4th of April of the year 2003.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HEMMER: All right, that's a statement from Baghdad just a few moments ago. A number of messages in there, including the enemy forces -- referring to the U.S. right now -- are on Baghdad, they say, but they have weakened in other parts of the country. God will protect Baghdad, the message from Mohammed Saeed al-Sahhaf. And attributing all this speech yet again to the Iraqi leader, Saddam Hussein, and urging the army as well as regular Iraqis to step up their attacks on invaders.
We'll keep track of what's happening in Baghdad. Also watching what's happening down at CENTCOM. A long briefing today about the operations the U.S. have now conducted and again, as I mentioned before, day 17 of Operation Iraqi Freedom. U.S. tanks now moving into the heart of Baghdad earlier today.
Where they are right now, whether they've moved back out of the city, we cannot say for certain, but we will check in with our embedded reporters. We have a whole lot more for you, when we continue, right after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HEMMER: It is Saturday morning and good afternoon from Kuwait City.
I'm Bill Hemmer.
Heidi Collins back at the CNN Center -- Heidi, good morning to you, as well.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to you, Bill.
Thank you.
We want to begin this morning with an interesting story from one of our embedded reporters.
Walking through a school is an inspiring thing to do in peacetime, but war changes even the simplest things.
CNN's Ryan Chilcote went along with the 101st Airborne to search a place that's supposed to have desks and books and blackboards in it, but it had much more than that.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RYAN CHILCOTE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Outside a Najaf high school, Specialist Kim Kahr (ph) works a crowd eager to help with one of the most effective weapons of all, fluency in Arabic.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There are 50 missiles inside there.
CHILCOTE: Moments later, the same guys who say they were forced to stash the weapons by Fedayeen militia lead Noslak (ph) Battalion's Bravo Company into the school halls. Apparently believing American soldiers would never target a school or go looking around in one, the weapons, a hodgepodge from the world's best makers to the homemade, lie out in the open.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, yes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: One, two, three, four, five, six, seven hand grenades.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's a good one.
CHILCOTE: Another room reveals rocket propelled grenades with the fuses ready to go. For the American Joe, it's a picture perfect moment. Everyone wants in on the action. A third room reveals mortars. It has all the smell of a successful hunt.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's 10 pounds of explosives to take care of there.
CHILCOTE: Taking away Saddam's weapons has the engineers, whose job it is to blow it all up, salivating. These I.D. cards may prove to be the biggest find of all. The Fedayeen are already captured with their I.D.s or weapons.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They seem to be not having it on them when they're caught or when they're questioned, but they seem to have a cache somewhere. There's probably plenty of other caches that we know about.
CHILCOTE: When the work was done, the school was gun-free, something those slack soldiers hope to repeat one building at a time.
Ryan Chilcote, CNN, with the 101st Airborne, Najaf, Iraq.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Information Minister>
