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CNN Live At Daybreak
Coalition Forces Take Mountaintop Near Mosul
Aired April 09, 2003 - 06:40 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: Earlier today you saw some live pictures out of Erbil in the northern part of Iraq, Kurdish-controlled country.
In Mosul now, Jane Arraf joins us by telephone to say what she's been observing today.
Jane, what do you have there?
JANE ARRAF, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Bill, we're actually about 10 miles away from Mosul, which is the closest that anyone has gotten, apart from Iraqis, since this war began. Now we're on a mountaintop. It's called McCluve (ph) Mountain, and it's significant because U.S. Special Forces and the Kurdish peshmerga just took this mountain late last night. The Iraqi forces withdrew a couple of days ago. But last night, the U.S. and the Kurds took this mountaintop, which essentially means that if they wanted to, they could just go into Mosul from here. There are now no longer any Iraqi defenses between this mountain, which was the biggest obstacle before Mosul, and that city of Mosul.
Now what we're seeing, it's a very hazy day. If it weren't hazy, we would be able to see Mosul quite clearly from where we're standing. As it is, we can see the edge of one of Saddam Hussein's palaces, one of the big northern palaces built on the edge of that city.
Now there really wasn't much of a fight here at all. But in other places, Kurdish military commanders tell us they did have Iraqis surrendering, including up to the rank of lieutenant colonel. And those people have been taken away. They expect more they say -- Bill.
HEMMER: Jane, is there an idea right now that you have based on the sources you're working up there in a military sense just how large the Iraqi force may still be in mass along the northern front or is that something right now that is just too allusive?
ARRAF: There's -- truly (ph) we have a much better sense, and military commanders do as well, in the past day or so with the fall of Baghdad, it seems that more and more Iraqi forces are melting away. Now there hasn't really been a lot of active fighting here along the front lines, apart from a few spots. Generally what we've seen is Iraqi forces pulling back to Mosul and Kirkuk, those two major cities, and then U.S. Special Forces, the small number they have here, backed by peshmerga, advancing forward.
Now as we've probably seen this morning as well, there have been tanks coming in through the north from an airfield in Harir (ph), which means that if they want to and when they want to, the U.S. forces can move from here into Mosul and Kirkuk. Right now it hasn't happened, and they're pretty well staying put. But as I say, we are now 10 miles away from Mosul with nothing in between -- Bill.
HEMMER: All right, Jane, thanks. Jane Arraf by way of telephone.
Just to double up on that report there, yesterday the U.S. military is still ferrying in tanks and armored vehicles into the northern front. It was about two-and-a-half weeks ago when the 173rd Airborne Brigade did that nighttime drop through the back of that cargo plane into the north. They've been fortified since then. And so clearly the Pentagon doesn't believe there was somewhat of a fight to be taken care of in the northern part of Iraq.
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 9, 2003 - 06:40 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Earlier today you saw some live pictures out of Erbil in the northern part of Iraq, Kurdish-controlled country.
In Mosul now, Jane Arraf joins us by telephone to say what she's been observing today.
Jane, what do you have there?
JANE ARRAF, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Bill, we're actually about 10 miles away from Mosul, which is the closest that anyone has gotten, apart from Iraqis, since this war began. Now we're on a mountaintop. It's called McCluve (ph) Mountain, and it's significant because U.S. Special Forces and the Kurdish peshmerga just took this mountain late last night. The Iraqi forces withdrew a couple of days ago. But last night, the U.S. and the Kurds took this mountaintop, which essentially means that if they wanted to, they could just go into Mosul from here. There are now no longer any Iraqi defenses between this mountain, which was the biggest obstacle before Mosul, and that city of Mosul.
Now what we're seeing, it's a very hazy day. If it weren't hazy, we would be able to see Mosul quite clearly from where we're standing. As it is, we can see the edge of one of Saddam Hussein's palaces, one of the big northern palaces built on the edge of that city.
Now there really wasn't much of a fight here at all. But in other places, Kurdish military commanders tell us they did have Iraqis surrendering, including up to the rank of lieutenant colonel. And those people have been taken away. They expect more they say -- Bill.
HEMMER: Jane, is there an idea right now that you have based on the sources you're working up there in a military sense just how large the Iraqi force may still be in mass along the northern front or is that something right now that is just too allusive?
ARRAF: There's -- truly (ph) we have a much better sense, and military commanders do as well, in the past day or so with the fall of Baghdad, it seems that more and more Iraqi forces are melting away. Now there hasn't really been a lot of active fighting here along the front lines, apart from a few spots. Generally what we've seen is Iraqi forces pulling back to Mosul and Kirkuk, those two major cities, and then U.S. Special Forces, the small number they have here, backed by peshmerga, advancing forward.
Now as we've probably seen this morning as well, there have been tanks coming in through the north from an airfield in Harir (ph), which means that if they want to and when they want to, the U.S. forces can move from here into Mosul and Kirkuk. Right now it hasn't happened, and they're pretty well staying put. But as I say, we are now 10 miles away from Mosul with nothing in between -- Bill.
HEMMER: All right, Jane, thanks. Jane Arraf by way of telephone.
Just to double up on that report there, yesterday the U.S. military is still ferrying in tanks and armored vehicles into the northern front. It was about two-and-a-half weeks ago when the 173rd Airborne Brigade did that nighttime drop through the back of that cargo plane into the north. They've been fortified since then. And so clearly the Pentagon doesn't believe there was somewhat of a fight to be taken care of in the northern part of Iraq.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
