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CNN Live At Daybreak
Hundreds of Thousands Attending Funeral for Shi'ite Cleric Killed in Mosque Bombing Friday
Aired September 02, 2003 - 05:02 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: We'll get the latest on that police station bombing in Baghdad in just a moment. But first, another tense situation, a funeral in Najaf. Hundreds of thousands are attending the funeral for a leading Shi'ite cleric killed in the bombing of a mosque on Friday.
Ben Wedeman is there -- Ben, what's happening now?
BEN WEDEMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Carol, actually, those hundreds of thousands of mourners have by -- have passed us at this point. They're congregated around the Imam Ali Mosque. That is the scene of that bombing.
But as they went by, we saw the coffin of the late Ayatollah Mohammed Baqir al-Hakim, the assassinated leader of the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq. But it's a symbolic coffin, because due to the violence, the strength of the blast, they were only able to find his turban, his ring and his wrist watch. So it was an empty coffin.
But as it went by, we heard the crowd chanting that they would sacrifice their lives and their souls for the late Ayatollah. We also heard them calling for death to former members of the Ba'ath Party. It does appear that suspicion is very much focused in Najaf on those remnants of the Ba'ath Party. In fact, just a while ago we got out of a press conference with Ahmed Chalabi. He's the head of the Iraqi National Conference. And he's also the rotating chair now, as of the 1st of September, of the Iraqi Governing Council, that Council appointed by the coalition.
And he said that he is sure that the trail from this bombing leads back to Saddam Hussein, the Ba'ath Party and foreign elements who have entered Iraq.
Now, one bit of information we also have is that according to police sources here, this morning they found the second car bomb in two days here in Najaf. They were able to diffuse it. But there is a high alert in this city for the possibility of further bombs -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Ben, a question, who do people on the street think is responsible for the bombing at that mosque?
WEDEMAN: Their anger, certainly, is focused on Saddam Hussein and these remnants of the Ba'ath Party. It is also widely believed that groups that were sponsored and supported by the Ba'ath Party in the days of Saddam Hussein, fundamentalist Sunni groups, are still out there and operating and they have joined forces with the remnants of the old regime.
And many people here, in fact, do believe that foreign fighters, jihadi, so to speak, possibly even al Qaeda elements, have entered the country since the fall of Saddam Hussein, creating or joining a sort of unholy alliance of the old regime with new elements from abroad, and possibly even the Ba'ath Party to have conducted this bombing, which left at least 80 people dead -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Ben Wedeman live from Iraq this morning.
Now to the breaking news out of Baghdad. A huge explosion at the main police station just about two hours ago.
For the latest, let's go live to the Iraqi capital now and Rym Brahimi -- Rym, what happened this time?
RYM BRAHIMI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Carol, it happened in east central Baghdad in a car park right by a police station and not far from the police academy. A car blew up. An eyewitness, a retired policeman, said the car was a stationary car and he says he saw it blow up.
Now, of course, we don't know how it would have made its way into the car park past the gate that is there. We do know that there are several casualties. We're not sure what the degree of the casualties are, not sure whether there are any fatalities for the time being. But an eyewitness said -- that same retired policeman -- says a director of the police was injured at the scene -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Rym Brahimi reporting live from Baghdad.
Log onto our Web site for all the latest from Iraq. The address, cnn.com/world. The AOL keyword: CNN.
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Killed in Mosque Bombing Friday>
Aired September 2, 2003 - 05:02 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: We'll get the latest on that police station bombing in Baghdad in just a moment. But first, another tense situation, a funeral in Najaf. Hundreds of thousands are attending the funeral for a leading Shi'ite cleric killed in the bombing of a mosque on Friday.
Ben Wedeman is there -- Ben, what's happening now?
BEN WEDEMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Carol, actually, those hundreds of thousands of mourners have by -- have passed us at this point. They're congregated around the Imam Ali Mosque. That is the scene of that bombing.
But as they went by, we saw the coffin of the late Ayatollah Mohammed Baqir al-Hakim, the assassinated leader of the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq. But it's a symbolic coffin, because due to the violence, the strength of the blast, they were only able to find his turban, his ring and his wrist watch. So it was an empty coffin.
But as it went by, we heard the crowd chanting that they would sacrifice their lives and their souls for the late Ayatollah. We also heard them calling for death to former members of the Ba'ath Party. It does appear that suspicion is very much focused in Najaf on those remnants of the Ba'ath Party. In fact, just a while ago we got out of a press conference with Ahmed Chalabi. He's the head of the Iraqi National Conference. And he's also the rotating chair now, as of the 1st of September, of the Iraqi Governing Council, that Council appointed by the coalition.
And he said that he is sure that the trail from this bombing leads back to Saddam Hussein, the Ba'ath Party and foreign elements who have entered Iraq.
Now, one bit of information we also have is that according to police sources here, this morning they found the second car bomb in two days here in Najaf. They were able to diffuse it. But there is a high alert in this city for the possibility of further bombs -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Ben, a question, who do people on the street think is responsible for the bombing at that mosque?
WEDEMAN: Their anger, certainly, is focused on Saddam Hussein and these remnants of the Ba'ath Party. It is also widely believed that groups that were sponsored and supported by the Ba'ath Party in the days of Saddam Hussein, fundamentalist Sunni groups, are still out there and operating and they have joined forces with the remnants of the old regime.
And many people here, in fact, do believe that foreign fighters, jihadi, so to speak, possibly even al Qaeda elements, have entered the country since the fall of Saddam Hussein, creating or joining a sort of unholy alliance of the old regime with new elements from abroad, and possibly even the Ba'ath Party to have conducted this bombing, which left at least 80 people dead -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Ben Wedeman live from Iraq this morning.
Now to the breaking news out of Baghdad. A huge explosion at the main police station just about two hours ago.
For the latest, let's go live to the Iraqi capital now and Rym Brahimi -- Rym, what happened this time?
RYM BRAHIMI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Carol, it happened in east central Baghdad in a car park right by a police station and not far from the police academy. A car blew up. An eyewitness, a retired policeman, said the car was a stationary car and he says he saw it blow up.
Now, of course, we don't know how it would have made its way into the car park past the gate that is there. We do know that there are several casualties. We're not sure what the degree of the casualties are, not sure whether there are any fatalities for the time being. But an eyewitness said -- that same retired policeman -- says a director of the police was injured at the scene -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Rym Brahimi reporting live from Baghdad.
Log onto our Web site for all the latest from Iraq. The address, cnn.com/world. The AOL keyword: CNN.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Killed in Mosque Bombing Friday>
