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CNN Live At Daybreak
The Mood in Iraq
Aired November 03, 2003 - 05:06 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: Let's get serious again and go live to Iraq to check the mood among the Iraqis and the U.S. troops there.
Matthew Chance live in Baghdad -- good morning, Matthew.
MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, as well, Carol.
It's been a heightened state of alert here for the U.S. forces on the ground patrolling Iraq because yesterday, Sunday here local time, was the bloodiest since President Bush declared an end to major combat operations here in Iraq, at least the bloodiest for U.S. forces on the ground. We now know, as we've been reporting, that 16 U.S. soldiers were killed. Another 20 were injured when their Chinook helicopter was downed in corn fields near the flash point town of Fallujah, to the west of the Iraqi capital, Baghdad.
The helicopter, we've also learned, was carrying troops to Baghdad International Airport, ferrying them out of the country so they could enjoy some leave after a very intensive period of assignment in that area of western Iraq.
According to eyewitnesses, the helicopter was downed by a surface to air missile that was fired from beneath the foliage in that sort of farming area outside of Fallujah, although a rapid reaction force was deployed to the scene to extract the casualties, but also to examine forensic evidence to try and establish, from the U.S. Army's point of view, exactly what happened.
Now, there were three other U.S. personnel that were also killed in separate incidents around Iraq at about the same time in roadside bombs that were detonated as their convoys drove past. So the death toll for Sunday here in Iraq came to 19 in total. U.S. forces say now preparing themselves for the possibility of further violence of this nature -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Yes, I was just going to ask what the mood is like there now and if there were any changes to the way troops ferry other troops across the country?
CHANCE: Well, it seems that the focus of the violence has been in two places in what we're calling the Sunni Triangle, to the west of Baghdad, which is populated mainly by Sunni tribesmen, where we've seen the majority of these attacks against U.S. forces taking place, and also in the capital, Baghdad -- the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, from where I'm speaking to you right now. In both of those centers there have been intensive security measures undertaken. The troops, as I said, have been placed on a heightened state of alert because the coalition authorities say they have gathered intelligence that suggests that there will be an upsurge in these kinds of attacks over these coming days that we're currently witnessing -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Matthew Chance reporting live from Baghdad this morning.
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 November 3, 2003 - 05:06 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Let's get serious again and go live to Iraq to check the mood among the Iraqis and the U.S. troops there.
Matthew Chance live in Baghdad -- good morning, Matthew.
MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, as well, Carol.
It's been a heightened state of alert here for the U.S. forces on the ground patrolling Iraq because yesterday, Sunday here local time, was the bloodiest since President Bush declared an end to major combat operations here in Iraq, at least the bloodiest for U.S. forces on the ground. We now know, as we've been reporting, that 16 U.S. soldiers were killed. Another 20 were injured when their Chinook helicopter was downed in corn fields near the flash point town of Fallujah, to the west of the Iraqi capital, Baghdad.
The helicopter, we've also learned, was carrying troops to Baghdad International Airport, ferrying them out of the country so they could enjoy some leave after a very intensive period of assignment in that area of western Iraq.
According to eyewitnesses, the helicopter was downed by a surface to air missile that was fired from beneath the foliage in that sort of farming area outside of Fallujah, although a rapid reaction force was deployed to the scene to extract the casualties, but also to examine forensic evidence to try and establish, from the U.S. Army's point of view, exactly what happened.
Now, there were three other U.S. personnel that were also killed in separate incidents around Iraq at about the same time in roadside bombs that were detonated as their convoys drove past. So the death toll for Sunday here in Iraq came to 19 in total. U.S. forces say now preparing themselves for the possibility of further violence of this nature -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Yes, I was just going to ask what the mood is like there now and if there were any changes to the way troops ferry other troops across the country?
CHANCE: Well, it seems that the focus of the violence has been in two places in what we're calling the Sunni Triangle, to the west of Baghdad, which is populated mainly by Sunni tribesmen, where we've seen the majority of these attacks against U.S. forces taking place, and also in the capital, Baghdad -- the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, from where I'm speaking to you right now. In both of those centers there have been intensive security measures undertaken. The troops, as I said, have been placed on a heightened state of alert because the coalition authorities say they have gathered intelligence that suggests that there will be an upsurge in these kinds of attacks over these coming days that we're currently witnessing -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Matthew Chance reporting live from Baghdad this morning.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
