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CNN Live At Daybreak
War in Iraq: Israel, Palestine Reaction
Aired April 10, 2003 - 05:48 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: Let's head live to Jerusalem now and Jerrold Kessel to get the view from there.
Good morning -- Jerrold.
JERROLD KESSEL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.
And if Sheila was talking about two different perspectives of that -- of the war, well here you have in a microcosm two different perspectives in the same city and certainly in the same region.
Palestinians and Israelis reading this completely differently. And the Palestinians very much reflecting what Sheila was talking about in the mood in Syria, and perhaps elsewhere in the Arab world. Palestinian press, which the Palestinians have been watching it through Al Jazeera and the other Arabic language networks, and that is reflected today in the Arabic language press of the Palestinians in east Jerusalem and on the West Bank. The question of occupation, of conquest, of invaders rather than liberation, that's very much reflected.
Let me show the headline in the "Ala Al Yam" newspaper of the Palestinian Authority, and there's that image again that Sheila was talking about of the, not of the fall of the statue of Saddam Hussein, but of the U.S. flag there. And the headline, very telling, it says "9th of April, The Fall of Baghdad." Not the fall of the regime, not the fall of Saddam Hussein, the fall of Baghdad with all the resonance that airs (ph) for the Arab world.
And this is accentuated for the Palestinians because they've been drawing the parallels between the U.S. attack on Iraq, as they see it, with the Israelis in regard to their battles with the Israelis. And that's why you can say along with perhaps the shock and awe that's being felt everywhere with reflection on events yesterday in the -- in the -- in the Palestinian community, there's also disbelief, dismay and not a little bit of despair.
And on the Israeli side, it's the exact opposite. You have relief and jubilation, no doubt about that. That reflected very much in the major Israeli newspapers, one of which do show those -- the fall of that statue. This newspaper has a single word, banner headline saying "Liberation." And the other one, the other major newspaper, also the fall of the statue saying "The Victory."
And the Israelis, very much that does reflect the mood in Israel, but it is, along with the relief, there's still a wariness. And it's pointed to note that the Israeli Defense establishment this morning decided not to change its rules of caution and that people have been urged to maintain their gas masks alert just in case that something might yet happen, even at this late stage in the war on Iraq -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Understand. Jerrold Kessel, reporting live from Jerusalem this morning, many thanks to you.
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 10, 2003 - 05:48 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Let's head live to Jerusalem now and Jerrold Kessel to get the view from there.
Good morning -- Jerrold.
JERROLD KESSEL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.
And if Sheila was talking about two different perspectives of that -- of the war, well here you have in a microcosm two different perspectives in the same city and certainly in the same region.
Palestinians and Israelis reading this completely differently. And the Palestinians very much reflecting what Sheila was talking about in the mood in Syria, and perhaps elsewhere in the Arab world. Palestinian press, which the Palestinians have been watching it through Al Jazeera and the other Arabic language networks, and that is reflected today in the Arabic language press of the Palestinians in east Jerusalem and on the West Bank. The question of occupation, of conquest, of invaders rather than liberation, that's very much reflected.
Let me show the headline in the "Ala Al Yam" newspaper of the Palestinian Authority, and there's that image again that Sheila was talking about of the, not of the fall of the statue of Saddam Hussein, but of the U.S. flag there. And the headline, very telling, it says "9th of April, The Fall of Baghdad." Not the fall of the regime, not the fall of Saddam Hussein, the fall of Baghdad with all the resonance that airs (ph) for the Arab world.
And this is accentuated for the Palestinians because they've been drawing the parallels between the U.S. attack on Iraq, as they see it, with the Israelis in regard to their battles with the Israelis. And that's why you can say along with perhaps the shock and awe that's being felt everywhere with reflection on events yesterday in the -- in the -- in the Palestinian community, there's also disbelief, dismay and not a little bit of despair.
And on the Israeli side, it's the exact opposite. You have relief and jubilation, no doubt about that. That reflected very much in the major Israeli newspapers, one of which do show those -- the fall of that statue. This newspaper has a single word, banner headline saying "Liberation." And the other one, the other major newspaper, also the fall of the statue saying "The Victory."
And the Israelis, very much that does reflect the mood in Israel, but it is, along with the relief, there's still a wariness. And it's pointed to note that the Israeli Defense establishment this morning decided not to change its rules of caution and that people have been urged to maintain their gas masks alert just in case that something might yet happen, even at this late stage in the war on Iraq -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Understand. Jerrold Kessel, reporting live from Jerusalem this morning, many thanks to you.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
