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CNN Live At Daybreak
Remembering Fallen Comrades in Iraq
Aired May 26, 2003 - 06:33 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: Chances are you'll relax this Memorial Day with family and friends. That won't be the case for U.S. troops in Iraq, though. They'll take a break from their patrols to remember their fallen comrades.
For more, we take you live to Baghdad now and CNN's Matthew Chance.
Good morning -- Matthew.
MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you as well, Carol.
And there will be ceremonies elsewhere, but here in Baghdad, the Iraqi capital, troops that are here guarding this city are continuing their normal daily duties, guarding key buildings in the city, going on foot patrols, armored patrols around the streets. Nevertheless, on this Memorial Day, it's a time of specific significance for the many thousands of troops who have been serving here in Iraq.
One of them is Sergeant Jonathan McClure (ph). He is joining us now. He's with Task Force 1-64, which was the first unit to go into the Iraqi capital.
How has seeing combat changed your view of Memorial Day?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What's changed my views for Memorial Day is what our forefathers had to go through, and having personally experienced it ourselves and basically putting more of patriotism and putting more values -- family values (UNINTELLIGIBLE) in how I live my day-to-day life now.
CHANCE: Now, Memorial Day is all about sort of commemorating those who have sacrificed themselves in battle. Did you see heavy combat? Are you putting faces to that concept?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, personally. You know, we've been into two battles, one with Anajaffin (ph) and another combat patrol that we did through Baghdad also. It's a bunch of -- all types of emotions and stuff coming through here, and it definitely puts faces and makes you think of what our forefathers had to go through also.
CHANCE: You guys have been out here for more than eight months now. What are you missing most about home?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Just ordinary life, you know, spending time with particularly family, our loved ones back home, spending precious time with them I guess are things that we miss the most.
CHANCE: Is morale holding up? Because what? It's a long time for anyone out on the road.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, morale is -- it's (UNINTELLIGIBLE). A lot of us are looking forward to going home. Days go by, we're just counting the number of days until we actually go home. But we do what we have to do in order to maintain Baghdad.
CHANCE: All right, Sergeant McClure (ph), thanks very much for speaking to us here on CNN on this Memorial Day.
Carol, throughout the rest of the day we'll be bringing you views from other troops deployed here in Baghdad, the Iraqi capital, throughout the course of this Memorial Day.
COSTELLO: We look forward to it. Matthew Chance live from Baghdad.
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 May 26, 2003 - 06:33 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Chances are you'll relax this Memorial Day with family and friends. That won't be the case for U.S. troops in Iraq, though. They'll take a break from their patrols to remember their fallen comrades.
For more, we take you live to Baghdad now and CNN's Matthew Chance.
Good morning -- Matthew.
MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you as well, Carol.
And there will be ceremonies elsewhere, but here in Baghdad, the Iraqi capital, troops that are here guarding this city are continuing their normal daily duties, guarding key buildings in the city, going on foot patrols, armored patrols around the streets. Nevertheless, on this Memorial Day, it's a time of specific significance for the many thousands of troops who have been serving here in Iraq.
One of them is Sergeant Jonathan McClure (ph). He is joining us now. He's with Task Force 1-64, which was the first unit to go into the Iraqi capital.
How has seeing combat changed your view of Memorial Day?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What's changed my views for Memorial Day is what our forefathers had to go through, and having personally experienced it ourselves and basically putting more of patriotism and putting more values -- family values (UNINTELLIGIBLE) in how I live my day-to-day life now.
CHANCE: Now, Memorial Day is all about sort of commemorating those who have sacrificed themselves in battle. Did you see heavy combat? Are you putting faces to that concept?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, personally. You know, we've been into two battles, one with Anajaffin (ph) and another combat patrol that we did through Baghdad also. It's a bunch of -- all types of emotions and stuff coming through here, and it definitely puts faces and makes you think of what our forefathers had to go through also.
CHANCE: You guys have been out here for more than eight months now. What are you missing most about home?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Just ordinary life, you know, spending time with particularly family, our loved ones back home, spending precious time with them I guess are things that we miss the most.
CHANCE: Is morale holding up? Because what? It's a long time for anyone out on the road.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, morale is -- it's (UNINTELLIGIBLE). A lot of us are looking forward to going home. Days go by, we're just counting the number of days until we actually go home. But we do what we have to do in order to maintain Baghdad.
CHANCE: All right, Sergeant McClure (ph), thanks very much for speaking to us here on CNN on this Memorial Day.
Carol, throughout the rest of the day we'll be bringing you views from other troops deployed here in Baghdad, the Iraqi capital, throughout the course of this Memorial Day.
COSTELLO: We look forward to it. Matthew Chance live from Baghdad.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.
