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CNN Live Today

POWs' Families Glad to Hear of Rescue

Aired April 14, 2003 - 10:08   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.


HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: We want to move on now to CNN's Jamie Colby, and she was on the phone with the wife of Apache pilot David Williams, when she saw his image on television. Jamie joins us from Fort Hood, Texas where Michelle Williams spoke to reporters just minutes ago, and we saw that. It was incredible -- Jamie.
JAMIE COLBY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: There is a euphoria throughout the base this morning, Heidi, and I was on the phone with Michelle when she spotted those pictures. She told me that her husband looks well. They did have a brief conversation yesterday for about ten minutes. In addition, David Williams had a chance to talk to his 2- year-old son who said, "Hi, daddy." That must have been words that just lifted his spirits.

Michelle today gave thanks to all of the people here in Killeen and across America for their prayers, and I asked her what it was about her husband that she thought got him through what must have been a truly terrible time.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MICHELLE WILLIAMS, WIFE OF FORMER POW: His belief in God, too. I know that he -- just along with -- most Americans, and myself every night, every day, every minute were praying that he was going to be released, and that I would see him again, and I know that that's what he was doing as well.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLBY: And though there aren't any definite plans yet about when the two will get together, it's interesting to note that Michelle had to make a tough decision during this time, whether or not to talk to the media about her husband. She saw a lot of the other families talking about their loved ones, but she herself is in the military. In fact, she has deployment orders as well. She's a Black Hawk helicopter pilot, and she was advised that if the Iraqis who were holding her husband heard that she was also in the military, that might endanger his welfare. She says today, that was the right decision -- Heidi.

COLLINS: Indeed. All right. Jamie Colby from Fort Hood, Texas today. Thanks so much.

LEON HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Well, U.S. Marines have poured into Tikrit right now, and they have met surprisingly little resistance in Saddam Hussein's hometown, and this is after an hour's long assault of the city, long feared where loyalists would make a final stand. We are not seeing that happen.

We're joined right now on the telephone by Paul Quinn-Judge, who is a writer with the "New York Times," and he is actually in Tikrit right now. Paul, just give us an idea of what is happening there right now?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (UNINTELLIGIBLE) "New York Times." It's remarkably quiet, even the anticipation of major fighting as you are saying here. There has been some intermittent shelling, some bombing, and there has been some (UNINTELLIGIBLE) militia, but what essentially happened was three, four days ago, the main bulk of the Iraqi defenses of the city, elite units, and the rest of the Iraqi army just evaporated. They went home.

HARRIS: What is -- right now, is there any fighting at all, even any skirmishing, is there any looting, as we've seen happening elsewhere throughout the country? Set the scene for us for the civilians right now.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The civilians right now are staying off the streets on the whole. Some are venturing out, some are trying to say hello to the troops, but most seem to be staying in their houses, well out of the way. Very few institutions like the main hospital is working as normal as it can -- in fact it doesn't have electricity or water. The streets are very quiet. There are helicopters low overhead. There are fighter bombers (UNINTELLIGIBLE) fairly often, and as I say, on the edge of the city there has been some shelling (UNINTELLIGIBLE), but little -- no clashes that we've come across within the city (UNINTELLIGIBLE) the Marines.

HARRIS: Paul, let me try to -- your phone line is popping in and out on us, I'm going to try to ask one more question here, if I can. A lot of people were expecting there to be quite a bit of resistance there because, perhaps, people there who lived there, both the Iraqi Republican Guard troops that may have been there, as well as the citizens there, they've been well taken care of by the Saddam Hussein regime, and the thinking had been that, perhaps, they would have sentiments that would still try to protect the Hussein regime. Are you seeing any sign at all that people there do not want to see the Marines or the U.S. troops show up there?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If they don't want to see them show up, they haven't been demonstrating it. The basic reaction (UNINTELLIGIBLE) people in Tikrit has been self-preservation rather than desire to defend any regime, or any one member of that regime.

HARRIS: Interesting. Thank you very much, Paul. Paul Quinn- Judge there. We thank you very much for checking in with us, and we hope to talk with you later on down the road. Stay safe.

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 14, 2003 - 10:08   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: We want to move on now to CNN's Jamie Colby, and she was on the phone with the wife of Apache pilot David Williams, when she saw his image on television. Jamie joins us from Fort Hood, Texas where Michelle Williams spoke to reporters just minutes ago, and we saw that. It was incredible -- Jamie.
JAMIE COLBY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: There is a euphoria throughout the base this morning, Heidi, and I was on the phone with Michelle when she spotted those pictures. She told me that her husband looks well. They did have a brief conversation yesterday for about ten minutes. In addition, David Williams had a chance to talk to his 2- year-old son who said, "Hi, daddy." That must have been words that just lifted his spirits.

Michelle today gave thanks to all of the people here in Killeen and across America for their prayers, and I asked her what it was about her husband that she thought got him through what must have been a truly terrible time.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MICHELLE WILLIAMS, WIFE OF FORMER POW: His belief in God, too. I know that he -- just along with -- most Americans, and myself every night, every day, every minute were praying that he was going to be released, and that I would see him again, and I know that that's what he was doing as well.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLBY: And though there aren't any definite plans yet about when the two will get together, it's interesting to note that Michelle had to make a tough decision during this time, whether or not to talk to the media about her husband. She saw a lot of the other families talking about their loved ones, but she herself is in the military. In fact, she has deployment orders as well. She's a Black Hawk helicopter pilot, and she was advised that if the Iraqis who were holding her husband heard that she was also in the military, that might endanger his welfare. She says today, that was the right decision -- Heidi.

COLLINS: Indeed. All right. Jamie Colby from Fort Hood, Texas today. Thanks so much.

LEON HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Well, U.S. Marines have poured into Tikrit right now, and they have met surprisingly little resistance in Saddam Hussein's hometown, and this is after an hour's long assault of the city, long feared where loyalists would make a final stand. We are not seeing that happen.

We're joined right now on the telephone by Paul Quinn-Judge, who is a writer with the "New York Times," and he is actually in Tikrit right now. Paul, just give us an idea of what is happening there right now?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (UNINTELLIGIBLE) "New York Times." It's remarkably quiet, even the anticipation of major fighting as you are saying here. There has been some intermittent shelling, some bombing, and there has been some (UNINTELLIGIBLE) militia, but what essentially happened was three, four days ago, the main bulk of the Iraqi defenses of the city, elite units, and the rest of the Iraqi army just evaporated. They went home.

HARRIS: What is -- right now, is there any fighting at all, even any skirmishing, is there any looting, as we've seen happening elsewhere throughout the country? Set the scene for us for the civilians right now.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The civilians right now are staying off the streets on the whole. Some are venturing out, some are trying to say hello to the troops, but most seem to be staying in their houses, well out of the way. Very few institutions like the main hospital is working as normal as it can -- in fact it doesn't have electricity or water. The streets are very quiet. There are helicopters low overhead. There are fighter bombers (UNINTELLIGIBLE) fairly often, and as I say, on the edge of the city there has been some shelling (UNINTELLIGIBLE), but little -- no clashes that we've come across within the city (UNINTELLIGIBLE) the Marines.

HARRIS: Paul, let me try to -- your phone line is popping in and out on us, I'm going to try to ask one more question here, if I can. A lot of people were expecting there to be quite a bit of resistance there because, perhaps, people there who lived there, both the Iraqi Republican Guard troops that may have been there, as well as the citizens there, they've been well taken care of by the Saddam Hussein regime, and the thinking had been that, perhaps, they would have sentiments that would still try to protect the Hussein regime. Are you seeing any sign at all that people there do not want to see the Marines or the U.S. troops show up there?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If they don't want to see them show up, they haven't been demonstrating it. The basic reaction (UNINTELLIGIBLE) people in Tikrit has been self-preservation rather than desire to defend any regime, or any one member of that regime.

HARRIS: Interesting. Thank you very much, Paul. Paul Quinn- Judge there. We thank you very much for checking in with us, and we hope to talk with you later on down the road. Stay safe.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com