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CNN Live At Daybreak
More Fighting in Liberian Capital
Aired July 22, 2003 - 06:07 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: The shelling and the shooting have started again in Liberia. It had died down overnight, but embassy workers and our own correspondents had been ordered into bunkers, while residents hide wherever they can.
Live now from the U.S. Embassy in Monrovia, CNN's Gaven Morris.
Gaven -- I understand you're allowed out of the embassy now because the shelling has actually stopped. There was supposed to be some kind of news conference from the Liberian government. Has it happened yet?
GAVEN MORRIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Not quite. It was delayed also by the ensuing fighting that broke out again this morning. It broke out very early, about 8:30 this morning, much earlier than we've seen in previous days. We had heard shells again around the compound, probably not as close as yesterday and not as fierce as yesterday. But also lots of machine gunfire on the streets of Monrovia this morning.
It's still full protection all around. We were in a bunker. We are now allowed out, but under full precautions that if anything else breaks out, everybody is back inside.
The disturbing news we have -- and we think this is what we will hear more about at this press conference shortly -- is that the government here is now claiming 600 people died in the attacks of yesterday. The attacks were very fierce, and we know there are many, many dead. We knew there were more than 100. Aid agencies are saying they think it's more, but perhaps not 600. The government says 600, maybe more than that dead.
So, everybody is trying to verify those numbers. If that is the case, that is an absolute disaster for the people of Monrovia, obviously. Many injured in the hospitals, in the clinics, where they're trying to deal with this emergency. Obviously, the humanitarian situation right across the city is critical.
And, really, today everybody is hoping that some stabilization can come. Those attacks this morning don't bode well for that.
COSTELLO: Gaven, I know no Americans were injured, but there were supposed to be reinforcements on the way to protect the embassy there. Where are they now?
MORRIS: Well, what happened was we had part of that deployment yesterday. We had 21 crack Marines come in from Rota in Spain. This is the specialist team that comes into anti-terrorist situations, secure situations, protecting things like the embassy. Half of them arrived yesterday -- 21. But then the mortars started. And pretty much behind here in the U.S. Embassy compound is where the helicopters land, and the mortars were landing literally 50 meters beyond the heli-pad.
So, for now, the rest of the team is suspended. They can't make it in until it is safe to do so. When they are in, there will be 56 of those crack Marines on the ground here just to protect the embassy compound.
COSTELLO: Gaven Morris live from Monrovia, Liberia. And when that news conference is started, we'll get back to you, Gaven. Many thanks.
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 July 22, 2003 - 06:07 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: The shelling and the shooting have started again in Liberia. It had died down overnight, but embassy workers and our own correspondents had been ordered into bunkers, while residents hide wherever they can.
Live now from the U.S. Embassy in Monrovia, CNN's Gaven Morris.
Gaven -- I understand you're allowed out of the embassy now because the shelling has actually stopped. There was supposed to be some kind of news conference from the Liberian government. Has it happened yet?
GAVEN MORRIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Not quite. It was delayed also by the ensuing fighting that broke out again this morning. It broke out very early, about 8:30 this morning, much earlier than we've seen in previous days. We had heard shells again around the compound, probably not as close as yesterday and not as fierce as yesterday. But also lots of machine gunfire on the streets of Monrovia this morning.
It's still full protection all around. We were in a bunker. We are now allowed out, but under full precautions that if anything else breaks out, everybody is back inside.
The disturbing news we have -- and we think this is what we will hear more about at this press conference shortly -- is that the government here is now claiming 600 people died in the attacks of yesterday. The attacks were very fierce, and we know there are many, many dead. We knew there were more than 100. Aid agencies are saying they think it's more, but perhaps not 600. The government says 600, maybe more than that dead.
So, everybody is trying to verify those numbers. If that is the case, that is an absolute disaster for the people of Monrovia, obviously. Many injured in the hospitals, in the clinics, where they're trying to deal with this emergency. Obviously, the humanitarian situation right across the city is critical.
And, really, today everybody is hoping that some stabilization can come. Those attacks this morning don't bode well for that.
COSTELLO: Gaven, I know no Americans were injured, but there were supposed to be reinforcements on the way to protect the embassy there. Where are they now?
MORRIS: Well, what happened was we had part of that deployment yesterday. We had 21 crack Marines come in from Rota in Spain. This is the specialist team that comes into anti-terrorist situations, secure situations, protecting things like the embassy. Half of them arrived yesterday -- 21. But then the mortars started. And pretty much behind here in the U.S. Embassy compound is where the helicopters land, and the mortars were landing literally 50 meters beyond the heli-pad.
So, for now, the rest of the team is suspended. They can't make it in until it is safe to do so. When they are in, there will be 56 of those crack Marines on the ground here just to protect the embassy compound.
COSTELLO: Gaven Morris live from Monrovia, Liberia. And when that news conference is started, we'll get back to you, Gaven. Many thanks.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.
