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CNN Live At Daybreak

Fighting for Tikrit Continues

Aired April 14, 2003 - 05:00   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: Five o'clock Eastern time.
I'm Carol Costello.

It is the last stronghold for Saddam Hussein's loyalists and it appears that Tikrit is close to falling now. An embedded journalist says U.S. Marines are in the heart of Tikrit, but there are sporadic gunfights. Tikrit is Saddam Hussein's ancestral hometown. Marines do occupy the center of that city and attack helicopters control the skies.

The seven U.S. service members rescued in Iraq could be back in the United States soon. All of the former POWs were taken to a medical facility in Kuwait just hours after being found near Samarah. None required hospitalization. Five of the ex-POWs are from the Army's 507th Maintenance Company. Two others are Apache helicopter pilots.

Saddam Hussein's half brother, Watban Ibrahim Hasan al-Tikriti, has been captured. He was taken into custody yesterday while attempting to flee across the border into Syria. He's on the U.S. government's most wanted list of Iraqis.

President Bush had a blunt warning for Syria -- do not harbor leaders of Iraq's fallen government. Mr. Bush also accused Syria of having chemical weapons. When asked yesterday whether Syria could face military action, Mr. Bush simply said they just need to cooperate.

(OTHER HEADLINE NEWS)

COSTELLO: Let's get a quick look now at what we've got coming up. America got a chance to smile when word came down that seven Army POWs had been rescued. We'll see how some family members celebrated in the States.

Another celebration, but for how long? What's next for Iraq? Our Candy Crowley updates us on the potholes lining the road to a new Iraq. And from Hong Kong we'll get an update on Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome and the fallout from that mystery ailment.

And good morning to you.

It's 2:00 p.m. in Baghdad, 5:00 a.m. at CNN's global headquarters in Atlanta.

I'm Carol Costello. This is Monday, April 14th.

Welcome to CNN's continuing coverage of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

You are looking now at a live picture of downtown Baghdad, where it looks peaceful, but we understand there are protests ongoing. We'll talk about them in just a bit.

Right now we want to give you an early briefing. President Bush postpones a state visit to Canada today. No word on just when that visit will take place. U.S. Central Command takes the spotlight two hours from now when it updates the war in Iraq. That's at 7:00 a.m. Eastern. Of course, CNN will carry that live.

And at Arlington National Cemetery, funeral services this morning for Marine First Lieutenant Frederick Pokorney, Jr., killed in a March 23 ambush near Nasiriya.

Now, to some of the latest images of the war.

U.S. Cobra attack helicopters were seen this morning flying over the city of Tikrit. The Cobras, along with F-18s supported -- F-18s, rather -- supported a major Marine ground offensive into Saddam Hussein's ancestral homeland. Earlier today, a 24 hour firefight in central Baghdad showed the capital is still not safe. U.S. Marines arrested three men suspected of shooting at them.

And U.S. Marines found a score of luxury cars in Baghdad's city hall. The vehicles are believed to belong to major players in the Iraqi regime. Some of the cars are valued at as much as $10 million.

Another of the coalition's most wanted is now in U.S. custody. Saddam Hussein's half brother was caught trying to escape into Syria. He didn't make it, but the United States believes others have and that Syria is now harboring members of Saddam's regime.

CNN's senior international correspondent Sheila MacVicar joins us live from Damascus -- good morning, Sheila.

President Bush is urging Syria to cooperate. What are the Syrians saying?

SHEILA MACVICAR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Good morning, Carol.

The rhetoric certainly is heating up between Washington and Damascus and it has to be said most of it's one way traffic coming out of Washington. A steady stream of allegations from senior Bush administration officials, including the president himself, as you said, all of them alleging a variety of things, that Syria is harboring a number of people wanted with the regime, people associated with the regime, that Syria may, indeed, even be harboring Iraq's weapons of mass destruction.

The line from the Syrians is consistent. What they have been saying over and over is there is no one here, we don't have anyone who's on the wanted list, we don't even have family members of those on the wanted list.

They also point out, and this is confirmed by CENTCOM, that U.S. forces are controlling those roads which lead from Iraq to the Syrian border. That apparently is, may be the way in which Saddam Hussein's half brother Watban was found the other day.

In addition to that, Carol, I can tell you that very well informed Western sources here in Damascus have told me that they have no intelligence information which would lead them to believe that, in fact, Syria is harboring anyone on the wanted list or even the larger wanted list, former members of the Baath Party, as President Bush has said, Saddam's military generals, a list of millions in all -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Well, if Syria were harboring members of Saddam's regime, would it be willing to turn them over? Would it be willing to show the United States?

MACVICAR: You have to remember, Carol, that relations between Saddam Hussein's regime and the Syrian regime have been, to say the least, very cool over much of the last 20 odd years. As a matter of fact, they were enemies. Syria fought against Iraq in the first Gulf War in 1991.

It's only been in the last two years that there has been any kind of thaw in that relationship. The Syrians have made very clear they have no love for Saddam Hussein, they have no love for his regime and in private conversations Syrian officials have indicated that if somebody were to show up here that the U.S. had an interest in, they wouldn't have any problem turning them over.

The question, of course, is why is there this steady stream of invective coming from Washington directed at Syria and what's the message to Syria? What is the U.S. asking the Syrians to do?

They say they want Syria to cooperate fully. The question is what all is on the U.S. agenda?

Carol.

COSTELLO: I understand.

Sheila MacVicar reporting live from Damascus, Syria this morning.

As we told you a few moments ago, there is a major U.S. Marine push to secure the northern Iraqi city of Tikrit.

CNN's Kathleen Koch has the latest now from the Pentagon -- Kathleen, is Tikrit falling, fallen?

KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I don't think it's quite there yet, but, you know, really, Carol, remarkably quickly the U.S. Marines are in the heart of Saddam Hussein's hometown of Tikrit. The troops from the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force pushed into the city early Monday morning, that after an initial foray on Sunday. They did meet some resistance, a spokesman for Central Command calling it, "a battle." It was believed that as many as 2,500 Republican Guard soldiers and members of Saddam's Fedayeen could be holed up in his hometown.

Now, massive air support backed up the U.S. forces on the ground as they moved into the city. There you can see the Cobra attack helicopters swooping overhead, also providing air support, F-18s flying up much higher. Overnight, now, Marines did drop some bombs, taking out some missile sites. The general command in the U.S. task force there is actually saying that there are so many air assets available that there are enough around Tikrit to "darken the skies."

But coalition leaders tell CNN that the city has not fallen yet.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CAPT. AL LOCKWOOD, BRITISH MILITARY SPOKESMAN: Tikrit has yet to fall. But hopefully it will be liberated in due course and we look forward to that very much.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KOCH: And Central Command has confirmed to CNN that the first U.S. fighter jet downed in the conflict it now believes was struck by friendly fire. This was on April 2. This was an F-18 Hornet that took off from the USS Kitty Hawk. It was flying a bombing run near Karbala when it was struck by what the U.S. believes was a U.S. Patriot missile.

The pilot of the single seater jet, 30-year-old Lieutenant Nathan White of Mesa, Arizona, died in that incident -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Kathleen Koch, thanks for that update live from the Pentagon this morning.

More now on those seven rescued American POWs. They could be back in the United States very soon. The seven are now in a military hospital in Kuwait, where three were treated for minor injuries. The other four required no treatment.

"Washington Post" reporter Peter Baker was on the plane evacuating the freed prisoners from Iraq and had one of the first interviews with them.

Baker told CNN the POWs were surprised by their rescue.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PETER BAKER, "THE WASHINGTON POST": Well, when they were first captured, they were, you know, kicked and beaten some, some sticks against the back and that sort of thing. But after that, they said the physical abuse really subsided. It became more just really mental torture, in a way, not knowing what would come next. You know, any moment they could be killed, they thought, by either their captors or really by even American bombs. They were in the middle of Baghdad as it was getting pummeled from the air. One of the bombs hit 50 yards from the prison that they were in one night. So they were in a constant state of uncertainty, not knowing what could happen at any moment.

They were interrogated, yes. Sometimes they had blindfolds on when they were interrogated. Sometimes they didn't. Sometimes the Iraqis played gentle inquisitor, which, of course, was just a way of trying to soften them up. They asked them, you know, where their division was located, where were different units located and then they asked them a lot of political questions -- why are you here in Iraq? Why are you here killing our war against Iraq and that sort of thing?

Well, it came as a complete shock to them. Suddenly out of the blue the doors are being kicked in and they hear shouting. Marines are screaming, "Get down! Get down!" Somebody then shouts out, "If you're an American, stand up!" So they did and just like that, within two minutes, they were hustled out of the house onto a helicopter and out of there.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: OK, more on this story now. So how did the Marines reach the POWs?

As CNN's Wolf Blitzer reports, this story begins in the Iraqi town of Samarah.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WOLF BLITZER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Good luck acted upon with lightning speed, it didn't begin as a rescue operation. U.S. Marine units were approaching Tikrit, preparing for the battle for that city. When a Marine reconnaissance battalion go to the nearby town of Samarah, a policeman asked them if they'd come for the prisoners.

DONALD RUMSFELD, SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: Iraqis came up to American military and said that there are seven Americans at this location and it was about, oh, six or eight kilometers south of Tikrit, and that you should go get them. And they did.

BLITZER: The Marines were led to a building in Samarah, guarded by Iraqi soldiers who'd been abandoned by their commanders. The prisoners were promptly handed over. Reporter Matthew Fisher of the "National Post" of Canada was in the area.

MATTHEW FISHER, "NATIONAL POST OF CANADA": The Americans, the Marines were astonished. They were taken and found the prisoners. And immediately they said they broke into tears there. There was incredible joy.

BLITZER: As the news trickled out after seven o'clock Eastern time this morning, CNN's Bob Franken was among the first with word of the rescue and the prisoners' condition.

BOB FRANKEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We have now confirmed the number is seven and we also have new information, as you can imagine, that's circling out. We are now told that two of them suffered gunshot wounds. We do not know the extent of the wounds.

BLITZER: The two wounded POWs were able to walk under their own power. All the former prisoners and their Iraqi guards were taken to Kuwait, where they'll be debriefed. The stark pictures of these seven young people had become familiar to us over the past three weeks. Two of them, Army Chief Warrant Officers Ronald Young and David Williams, were captured when their Apache helicopter went down south of Baghdad on March 24. The other five were from the now well known Army 507th Maintenance Company, PFC Jessica Lynch's unit, based at Fort Bliss, Texas -- Sergeant James Riley, Private First Class Patrick Miller, Specialist Edgar Hernandez, Joseph Hudson and Shoshana Johnson, captured after their unit was ambushed near Nasiriya three weeks ago today.

Now the families of all seven finally seeing new pictures of their loved ones.

Wolf Blitzer, CNN, Doha, Qatar.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: And CNN's Jamie Colby has an exclusive live interview with the wife of former POW David Williams. You can see it on AMERICAN MORNING about three hours from now.

Coming up, some familiar faces are back on the beat in business. We'll tell you how law and order is being restored in Iraq's second largest city.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: The streets of Baghdad overnight with some kind of flare in the background. Things are not exactly quiet in Baghdad. In fact, there's a big protest going on right now.

Let's head there live and check with Michael Holmes -- good morning, Michael.

MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, Carol.

Yes, the protest that is going on behind me quite noisy. It's down to about 100 protesters; earlier, as many as perhaps 200. They're chanting things "Down, down USA!" They are also, and perhaps significantly, chanting, "Long Live the Baath Party!" Now, the Baath Party, of course, the party of Saddam Hussein and his hierarchy. Most members of the Baath Party around Baghdad, senior ones, anyway, have either disappeared or are loudly denying their involvement with the party. However, at least some members are obviously willing to come out and publicly praise the party of the former regime.

But among those demonstrators, it has to be said, are ordinary Iraqis who are merely frustrated, frustrated at the lack of control in the city, the looting that has gone on, which is dying off at the moment, it has to be said. But that probably because just about everything has been looted. The frustration on the streets is palpable. People are angry that there has been no security given to places like the museum, the hospitals. Even the national theater has been looted. And they say Americans aren't doing enough. The Marines say it's not their job and they're trying to recruit police, Iraqi police, to go back to work. There's been numerous pleas for this to happen.

And today we are seeing patrols of Iraqi policemen on the streets, albeit unarmed, and virtually all of them going out with a U.S. military escort as they do their patrols. However, the Marines say this is a start. The public says they like the idea, too. But many have cautioned that these are the same police who were policemen under Saddam Hussein and were notorious for demanding on the spot fines for going through a red light, say, when there was no red light in sight.

So there is a suggestion, a feeling that these policemen are tainted by association with the previous regime. But as I say, things have been so desperate on the streets in terms of the looting and the complete breakdown of law and order, that locals say they'll take anything they can -- Carol.

COSTELLO: You can understand that.

Are other civil service workers, Iraqi civil service workers, going back to work?

HOLMES: That is the plea. There was a meeting here yesterday which was called by one of the senior civil servants in the city. And he was basically pleading with people to go back to work, energy workers. Electricity is still out in Baghdad, another major cause for concern for locals. And also people, teachers, ambulance drivers. There's no one to pick up the injured if they are injured. And also doctors who are afraid to go back to their hospitals because they've been staying home protecting their own houses from looters.

What we do know is that some electrical workers have gone back to work. There is a suggestion that they may be able to get the power grid up and running, at least in some limited form, in three days or so. But at the moment, there is no mass return to work, Carol, and that is exactly what the Marines here are asking people to do.

COSTELLO: OK, well, you keep us posted throughout the morning, Michael Holmes.

Many thanks to you, live from Baghdad this morning.

We want to take a step back now and see how war developments unfolded over the past 12 hours or so.

CNN's Fredricka Whitfield brings us up to speed.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): 11:53 a.m., Matthew Fisher, the Canadian reporter, tells CNN that it was totally an accident that the POWs were found. He said an Iraqi policeman had approached the Marines asking if they had come for the prisoners. The policeman then led the Marines to a nearby building, where they found the seven Americans still under guard by the Iraqis.

1:04 p.m., President Bush calls today a great day for the families of the seven missing who are now free. He adds that there are still MIAs in Iraq and that the U.S. will continue to look for them. President Bush then warns Syria against harboring Baath Party officials and said U.S. authorities believe there are chemical weapons in Syria.

1:38 p.m., CNN's Ryan Chilcote reports that four U.S. soldiers from the 101st Airborne Division have been wounded in a grenade attack in Mahmudiya. The soldiers were trying to clear government buildings.

5:20 p.m., CNN's Jamie McIntyre reports that one of the Saddam's half brothers is in U.S. custody after attempting to escape across the border into Syria. Watban Ibrahim Hasan al-Tikriti is on the U.S. military's list of 55 most wanted Iraqi senior leaders.

5:30 p.m., CNN's Rula Amin reports there is a firefight in front of the Palestine Hotel, where many foreign journalists are staying. U.S. Marines tell CNN that they are looking for snipers in Baghdad.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: Thank you, Fredricka.

Now a look at the latest casualty figures. U.S. and British officials now say 148 coalition troops have died in Operation Iraqi Freedom, 117 of them American. One hundred five were killed in combat and 12 in non-hostile situations. Thirty-one British troops have been killed in Operation Iraqi Freedom, nine in combat, 20 in non-hostile incidents and two deaths are still undetermined.

The Iraqi government never did release information on military losses and there are no reliable figures on civilians killed.

Coming up, Ariel Sharon extends the olive branch. Could he be making a pathway for peace? We'll take you live to Jerusalem for the latest.

But first, a look at some images of war.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: And you're taking a look at the injured in the country of Iraq going into hospitals that have been looted, but doctors there are trying as best they can to treat the injured. And you can see more of them right now.

5:25 Eastern time.

Welcome back.

Let's talk about Jerusalem now. Prime Minister Ariel Sharon says Israel will have to give up some Jewish settlements to achieve peace with the Palestinians. The prime minister wouldn't discuss specific settlements, but he says Israel must make painful choices now.

Our Jerrold Kessel has details -- good morning.

JERROLD KESSEL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.

Now, we're constantly hearing, obviously with due course, from U.S. leaders, political and military, that the war in Iraq isn't over. But from the point of view over here, both the Palestinians and Israelis are seeing it really as the day after the war in Iraq already. And they're looking to the, primarily to the possibility that President Bush, perhaps with Tony Blair and the West, will be coming to try after Iraq to push through an Israeli-Palestinian settlement. And that's what they're looking towards.

And that's what I think the context should be seen for Ariel Sharon, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's remarks to an Israeli newspaper yesterday about the prospect of peacemaking and the need for Israel to make painful concessions.

It is with the idea that after the Iraq war, after the formation of a Palestinian cabinet, there will be the issuing of that so-called road map to peace, of the quartet, the United States, the United Nations, Europe and Russia's peace plan for the Middle East. And the Israelis wary, you could say, about what that road map constitutes. And that is what Mr. Sharon was talking about.

He didn't say anything dramatically new in the sense that what he had to say was that there needs to be painful concessions for peace. He fleshed it out a little bit with the context of using a few names of places in the West Bank which he referred to. But really what he seemed to be saying is there needs to be a peace program. He did say that the war in Iraq had meant that there was the opening for a real peace initiative for really a changing of the face of the Middle East, but that it needs to go in the proper direction, not what the Israelis see as something of a half baked peace initiative, that road map to peace.

And this, I believe, is what Mr. Sharon is signaling to Washington, above all, and it's no accident that he's sending one of his top officials to meet with Condoleezza Rice in Washington today to express some of the Israeli reservations about the road map and yet to underline his readiness to move towards peace if it's done in the right way -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Understand.

Jerrold Kessel live from Jerusalem this morning.

Coming up in our next half hour, the battle for Tikrit. Coalition forces move into Saddam's home town. We'll take you there next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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Aired April 14, 2003 - 05:00   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Five o'clock Eastern time.
I'm Carol Costello.

It is the last stronghold for Saddam Hussein's loyalists and it appears that Tikrit is close to falling now. An embedded journalist says U.S. Marines are in the heart of Tikrit, but there are sporadic gunfights. Tikrit is Saddam Hussein's ancestral hometown. Marines do occupy the center of that city and attack helicopters control the skies.

The seven U.S. service members rescued in Iraq could be back in the United States soon. All of the former POWs were taken to a medical facility in Kuwait just hours after being found near Samarah. None required hospitalization. Five of the ex-POWs are from the Army's 507th Maintenance Company. Two others are Apache helicopter pilots.

Saddam Hussein's half brother, Watban Ibrahim Hasan al-Tikriti, has been captured. He was taken into custody yesterday while attempting to flee across the border into Syria. He's on the U.S. government's most wanted list of Iraqis.

President Bush had a blunt warning for Syria -- do not harbor leaders of Iraq's fallen government. Mr. Bush also accused Syria of having chemical weapons. When asked yesterday whether Syria could face military action, Mr. Bush simply said they just need to cooperate.

(OTHER HEADLINE NEWS)

COSTELLO: Let's get a quick look now at what we've got coming up. America got a chance to smile when word came down that seven Army POWs had been rescued. We'll see how some family members celebrated in the States.

Another celebration, but for how long? What's next for Iraq? Our Candy Crowley updates us on the potholes lining the road to a new Iraq. And from Hong Kong we'll get an update on Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome and the fallout from that mystery ailment.

And good morning to you.

It's 2:00 p.m. in Baghdad, 5:00 a.m. at CNN's global headquarters in Atlanta.

I'm Carol Costello. This is Monday, April 14th.

Welcome to CNN's continuing coverage of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

You are looking now at a live picture of downtown Baghdad, where it looks peaceful, but we understand there are protests ongoing. We'll talk about them in just a bit.

Right now we want to give you an early briefing. President Bush postpones a state visit to Canada today. No word on just when that visit will take place. U.S. Central Command takes the spotlight two hours from now when it updates the war in Iraq. That's at 7:00 a.m. Eastern. Of course, CNN will carry that live.

And at Arlington National Cemetery, funeral services this morning for Marine First Lieutenant Frederick Pokorney, Jr., killed in a March 23 ambush near Nasiriya.

Now, to some of the latest images of the war.

U.S. Cobra attack helicopters were seen this morning flying over the city of Tikrit. The Cobras, along with F-18s supported -- F-18s, rather -- supported a major Marine ground offensive into Saddam Hussein's ancestral homeland. Earlier today, a 24 hour firefight in central Baghdad showed the capital is still not safe. U.S. Marines arrested three men suspected of shooting at them.

And U.S. Marines found a score of luxury cars in Baghdad's city hall. The vehicles are believed to belong to major players in the Iraqi regime. Some of the cars are valued at as much as $10 million.

Another of the coalition's most wanted is now in U.S. custody. Saddam Hussein's half brother was caught trying to escape into Syria. He didn't make it, but the United States believes others have and that Syria is now harboring members of Saddam's regime.

CNN's senior international correspondent Sheila MacVicar joins us live from Damascus -- good morning, Sheila.

President Bush is urging Syria to cooperate. What are the Syrians saying?

SHEILA MACVICAR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Good morning, Carol.

The rhetoric certainly is heating up between Washington and Damascus and it has to be said most of it's one way traffic coming out of Washington. A steady stream of allegations from senior Bush administration officials, including the president himself, as you said, all of them alleging a variety of things, that Syria is harboring a number of people wanted with the regime, people associated with the regime, that Syria may, indeed, even be harboring Iraq's weapons of mass destruction.

The line from the Syrians is consistent. What they have been saying over and over is there is no one here, we don't have anyone who's on the wanted list, we don't even have family members of those on the wanted list.

They also point out, and this is confirmed by CENTCOM, that U.S. forces are controlling those roads which lead from Iraq to the Syrian border. That apparently is, may be the way in which Saddam Hussein's half brother Watban was found the other day.

In addition to that, Carol, I can tell you that very well informed Western sources here in Damascus have told me that they have no intelligence information which would lead them to believe that, in fact, Syria is harboring anyone on the wanted list or even the larger wanted list, former members of the Baath Party, as President Bush has said, Saddam's military generals, a list of millions in all -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Well, if Syria were harboring members of Saddam's regime, would it be willing to turn them over? Would it be willing to show the United States?

MACVICAR: You have to remember, Carol, that relations between Saddam Hussein's regime and the Syrian regime have been, to say the least, very cool over much of the last 20 odd years. As a matter of fact, they were enemies. Syria fought against Iraq in the first Gulf War in 1991.

It's only been in the last two years that there has been any kind of thaw in that relationship. The Syrians have made very clear they have no love for Saddam Hussein, they have no love for his regime and in private conversations Syrian officials have indicated that if somebody were to show up here that the U.S. had an interest in, they wouldn't have any problem turning them over.

The question, of course, is why is there this steady stream of invective coming from Washington directed at Syria and what's the message to Syria? What is the U.S. asking the Syrians to do?

They say they want Syria to cooperate fully. The question is what all is on the U.S. agenda?

Carol.

COSTELLO: I understand.

Sheila MacVicar reporting live from Damascus, Syria this morning.

As we told you a few moments ago, there is a major U.S. Marine push to secure the northern Iraqi city of Tikrit.

CNN's Kathleen Koch has the latest now from the Pentagon -- Kathleen, is Tikrit falling, fallen?

KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I don't think it's quite there yet, but, you know, really, Carol, remarkably quickly the U.S. Marines are in the heart of Saddam Hussein's hometown of Tikrit. The troops from the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force pushed into the city early Monday morning, that after an initial foray on Sunday. They did meet some resistance, a spokesman for Central Command calling it, "a battle." It was believed that as many as 2,500 Republican Guard soldiers and members of Saddam's Fedayeen could be holed up in his hometown.

Now, massive air support backed up the U.S. forces on the ground as they moved into the city. There you can see the Cobra attack helicopters swooping overhead, also providing air support, F-18s flying up much higher. Overnight, now, Marines did drop some bombs, taking out some missile sites. The general command in the U.S. task force there is actually saying that there are so many air assets available that there are enough around Tikrit to "darken the skies."

But coalition leaders tell CNN that the city has not fallen yet.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CAPT. AL LOCKWOOD, BRITISH MILITARY SPOKESMAN: Tikrit has yet to fall. But hopefully it will be liberated in due course and we look forward to that very much.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KOCH: And Central Command has confirmed to CNN that the first U.S. fighter jet downed in the conflict it now believes was struck by friendly fire. This was on April 2. This was an F-18 Hornet that took off from the USS Kitty Hawk. It was flying a bombing run near Karbala when it was struck by what the U.S. believes was a U.S. Patriot missile.

The pilot of the single seater jet, 30-year-old Lieutenant Nathan White of Mesa, Arizona, died in that incident -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Kathleen Koch, thanks for that update live from the Pentagon this morning.

More now on those seven rescued American POWs. They could be back in the United States very soon. The seven are now in a military hospital in Kuwait, where three were treated for minor injuries. The other four required no treatment.

"Washington Post" reporter Peter Baker was on the plane evacuating the freed prisoners from Iraq and had one of the first interviews with them.

Baker told CNN the POWs were surprised by their rescue.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PETER BAKER, "THE WASHINGTON POST": Well, when they were first captured, they were, you know, kicked and beaten some, some sticks against the back and that sort of thing. But after that, they said the physical abuse really subsided. It became more just really mental torture, in a way, not knowing what would come next. You know, any moment they could be killed, they thought, by either their captors or really by even American bombs. They were in the middle of Baghdad as it was getting pummeled from the air. One of the bombs hit 50 yards from the prison that they were in one night. So they were in a constant state of uncertainty, not knowing what could happen at any moment.

They were interrogated, yes. Sometimes they had blindfolds on when they were interrogated. Sometimes they didn't. Sometimes the Iraqis played gentle inquisitor, which, of course, was just a way of trying to soften them up. They asked them, you know, where their division was located, where were different units located and then they asked them a lot of political questions -- why are you here in Iraq? Why are you here killing our war against Iraq and that sort of thing?

Well, it came as a complete shock to them. Suddenly out of the blue the doors are being kicked in and they hear shouting. Marines are screaming, "Get down! Get down!" Somebody then shouts out, "If you're an American, stand up!" So they did and just like that, within two minutes, they were hustled out of the house onto a helicopter and out of there.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: OK, more on this story now. So how did the Marines reach the POWs?

As CNN's Wolf Blitzer reports, this story begins in the Iraqi town of Samarah.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WOLF BLITZER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Good luck acted upon with lightning speed, it didn't begin as a rescue operation. U.S. Marine units were approaching Tikrit, preparing for the battle for that city. When a Marine reconnaissance battalion go to the nearby town of Samarah, a policeman asked them if they'd come for the prisoners.

DONALD RUMSFELD, SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: Iraqis came up to American military and said that there are seven Americans at this location and it was about, oh, six or eight kilometers south of Tikrit, and that you should go get them. And they did.

BLITZER: The Marines were led to a building in Samarah, guarded by Iraqi soldiers who'd been abandoned by their commanders. The prisoners were promptly handed over. Reporter Matthew Fisher of the "National Post" of Canada was in the area.

MATTHEW FISHER, "NATIONAL POST OF CANADA": The Americans, the Marines were astonished. They were taken and found the prisoners. And immediately they said they broke into tears there. There was incredible joy.

BLITZER: As the news trickled out after seven o'clock Eastern time this morning, CNN's Bob Franken was among the first with word of the rescue and the prisoners' condition.

BOB FRANKEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We have now confirmed the number is seven and we also have new information, as you can imagine, that's circling out. We are now told that two of them suffered gunshot wounds. We do not know the extent of the wounds.

BLITZER: The two wounded POWs were able to walk under their own power. All the former prisoners and their Iraqi guards were taken to Kuwait, where they'll be debriefed. The stark pictures of these seven young people had become familiar to us over the past three weeks. Two of them, Army Chief Warrant Officers Ronald Young and David Williams, were captured when their Apache helicopter went down south of Baghdad on March 24. The other five were from the now well known Army 507th Maintenance Company, PFC Jessica Lynch's unit, based at Fort Bliss, Texas -- Sergeant James Riley, Private First Class Patrick Miller, Specialist Edgar Hernandez, Joseph Hudson and Shoshana Johnson, captured after their unit was ambushed near Nasiriya three weeks ago today.

Now the families of all seven finally seeing new pictures of their loved ones.

Wolf Blitzer, CNN, Doha, Qatar.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: And CNN's Jamie Colby has an exclusive live interview with the wife of former POW David Williams. You can see it on AMERICAN MORNING about three hours from now.

Coming up, some familiar faces are back on the beat in business. We'll tell you how law and order is being restored in Iraq's second largest city.

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COSTELLO: The streets of Baghdad overnight with some kind of flare in the background. Things are not exactly quiet in Baghdad. In fact, there's a big protest going on right now.

Let's head there live and check with Michael Holmes -- good morning, Michael.

MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, Carol.

Yes, the protest that is going on behind me quite noisy. It's down to about 100 protesters; earlier, as many as perhaps 200. They're chanting things "Down, down USA!" They are also, and perhaps significantly, chanting, "Long Live the Baath Party!" Now, the Baath Party, of course, the party of Saddam Hussein and his hierarchy. Most members of the Baath Party around Baghdad, senior ones, anyway, have either disappeared or are loudly denying their involvement with the party. However, at least some members are obviously willing to come out and publicly praise the party of the former regime.

But among those demonstrators, it has to be said, are ordinary Iraqis who are merely frustrated, frustrated at the lack of control in the city, the looting that has gone on, which is dying off at the moment, it has to be said. But that probably because just about everything has been looted. The frustration on the streets is palpable. People are angry that there has been no security given to places like the museum, the hospitals. Even the national theater has been looted. And they say Americans aren't doing enough. The Marines say it's not their job and they're trying to recruit police, Iraqi police, to go back to work. There's been numerous pleas for this to happen.

And today we are seeing patrols of Iraqi policemen on the streets, albeit unarmed, and virtually all of them going out with a U.S. military escort as they do their patrols. However, the Marines say this is a start. The public says they like the idea, too. But many have cautioned that these are the same police who were policemen under Saddam Hussein and were notorious for demanding on the spot fines for going through a red light, say, when there was no red light in sight.

So there is a suggestion, a feeling that these policemen are tainted by association with the previous regime. But as I say, things have been so desperate on the streets in terms of the looting and the complete breakdown of law and order, that locals say they'll take anything they can -- Carol.

COSTELLO: You can understand that.

Are other civil service workers, Iraqi civil service workers, going back to work?

HOLMES: That is the plea. There was a meeting here yesterday which was called by one of the senior civil servants in the city. And he was basically pleading with people to go back to work, energy workers. Electricity is still out in Baghdad, another major cause for concern for locals. And also people, teachers, ambulance drivers. There's no one to pick up the injured if they are injured. And also doctors who are afraid to go back to their hospitals because they've been staying home protecting their own houses from looters.

What we do know is that some electrical workers have gone back to work. There is a suggestion that they may be able to get the power grid up and running, at least in some limited form, in three days or so. But at the moment, there is no mass return to work, Carol, and that is exactly what the Marines here are asking people to do.

COSTELLO: OK, well, you keep us posted throughout the morning, Michael Holmes.

Many thanks to you, live from Baghdad this morning.

We want to take a step back now and see how war developments unfolded over the past 12 hours or so.

CNN's Fredricka Whitfield brings us up to speed.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): 11:53 a.m., Matthew Fisher, the Canadian reporter, tells CNN that it was totally an accident that the POWs were found. He said an Iraqi policeman had approached the Marines asking if they had come for the prisoners. The policeman then led the Marines to a nearby building, where they found the seven Americans still under guard by the Iraqis.

1:04 p.m., President Bush calls today a great day for the families of the seven missing who are now free. He adds that there are still MIAs in Iraq and that the U.S. will continue to look for them. President Bush then warns Syria against harboring Baath Party officials and said U.S. authorities believe there are chemical weapons in Syria.

1:38 p.m., CNN's Ryan Chilcote reports that four U.S. soldiers from the 101st Airborne Division have been wounded in a grenade attack in Mahmudiya. The soldiers were trying to clear government buildings.

5:20 p.m., CNN's Jamie McIntyre reports that one of the Saddam's half brothers is in U.S. custody after attempting to escape across the border into Syria. Watban Ibrahim Hasan al-Tikriti is on the U.S. military's list of 55 most wanted Iraqi senior leaders.

5:30 p.m., CNN's Rula Amin reports there is a firefight in front of the Palestine Hotel, where many foreign journalists are staying. U.S. Marines tell CNN that they are looking for snipers in Baghdad.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: Thank you, Fredricka.

Now a look at the latest casualty figures. U.S. and British officials now say 148 coalition troops have died in Operation Iraqi Freedom, 117 of them American. One hundred five were killed in combat and 12 in non-hostile situations. Thirty-one British troops have been killed in Operation Iraqi Freedom, nine in combat, 20 in non-hostile incidents and two deaths are still undetermined.

The Iraqi government never did release information on military losses and there are no reliable figures on civilians killed.

Coming up, Ariel Sharon extends the olive branch. Could he be making a pathway for peace? We'll take you live to Jerusalem for the latest.

But first, a look at some images of war.

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COSTELLO: And you're taking a look at the injured in the country of Iraq going into hospitals that have been looted, but doctors there are trying as best they can to treat the injured. And you can see more of them right now.

5:25 Eastern time.

Welcome back.

Let's talk about Jerusalem now. Prime Minister Ariel Sharon says Israel will have to give up some Jewish settlements to achieve peace with the Palestinians. The prime minister wouldn't discuss specific settlements, but he says Israel must make painful choices now.

Our Jerrold Kessel has details -- good morning.

JERROLD KESSEL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.

Now, we're constantly hearing, obviously with due course, from U.S. leaders, political and military, that the war in Iraq isn't over. But from the point of view over here, both the Palestinians and Israelis are seeing it really as the day after the war in Iraq already. And they're looking to the, primarily to the possibility that President Bush, perhaps with Tony Blair and the West, will be coming to try after Iraq to push through an Israeli-Palestinian settlement. And that's what they're looking towards.

And that's what I think the context should be seen for Ariel Sharon, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's remarks to an Israeli newspaper yesterday about the prospect of peacemaking and the need for Israel to make painful concessions.

It is with the idea that after the Iraq war, after the formation of a Palestinian cabinet, there will be the issuing of that so-called road map to peace, of the quartet, the United States, the United Nations, Europe and Russia's peace plan for the Middle East. And the Israelis wary, you could say, about what that road map constitutes. And that is what Mr. Sharon was talking about.

He didn't say anything dramatically new in the sense that what he had to say was that there needs to be painful concessions for peace. He fleshed it out a little bit with the context of using a few names of places in the West Bank which he referred to. But really what he seemed to be saying is there needs to be a peace program. He did say that the war in Iraq had meant that there was the opening for a real peace initiative for really a changing of the face of the Middle East, but that it needs to go in the proper direction, not what the Israelis see as something of a half baked peace initiative, that road map to peace.

And this, I believe, is what Mr. Sharon is signaling to Washington, above all, and it's no accident that he's sending one of his top officials to meet with Condoleezza Rice in Washington today to express some of the Israeli reservations about the road map and yet to underline his readiness to move towards peace if it's done in the right way -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Understand.

Jerrold Kessel live from Jerusalem this morning.

Coming up in our next half hour, the battle for Tikrit. Coalition forces move into Saddam's home town. We'll take you there next.

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