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Breaking News

Uday, Qusay Hussein may be Among Dead in Raid in Iraq

Aired July 22, 2003 - 11:34   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.


LEON HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: We're going to try to see if we can get some more information on this breaking news that is coming in to us just within the last 10 minutes or so here, folks. You're looking here at pictures we are bringing in to us directly here from Mosul. And we'll apologize in advance if anything shows up on the screen that may be a bit unsettling. We've seen some rather graphic pictures on this screen here in the last few minutes here.
But what we're see here is the aftermath of a major raid on a house, that we are told -- a large house in Mosul in northern Iraq. And right now senior U.S. officials are telling us in that the aftermath of this raid there are no people right now who have been captured from the raid. However there have been four bodies recovered from that house.

They're also telling us that it is likely -- they're that trying right now to confirm this and identify with absolute certainty -- but it is likely that two of the four bodies taken out of this home in Mosul may be those of Saddam Hussein's sons, Uday and Qusay Hussein.

Let's go now to our Harris Whitbeck who is standing by in Baghdad and see what he has been able to learned as this news has been eking out around the world right now. Harris, what is the latest from there?

HARRIS WHITBECK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Leon, a few more details about what happened at that house in Mosul. Apparently U.S. soldiers were investigating the owner of that house. And let me preface this by saying this is all information from the al Jazeera television network who spoke to eyewitnesses on the ground.

Apparently U.S. soldiers were talking to the owner of this house, who apparently was one of Saddam Hussein's cousins. During the interrogation of this man, a gunfight ensued. People from within the house started firing at the soldiers. And that is when they apparently called in more firepower and went in there basically razing that house in Mosul in northern Iraq.

The result of that gunfire, at least four people dead, according to U.S. military sources here, high-ranking allies of Saddam Hussein. And again, it was al Jazeera who said, that according to eyewitnesses, at some point during the day, Saddam Hussein's sons Uday and Qusay have been in that house. But, again no word on whether they were in that house when the gunfight ensued -- Leon.

HARRIS: Very interesting. Harris, with this news coming out here -- and I'm sure you have not had a chance to really monitor much of a reaction there in Baghdad. But has there been any noticeable reaction or uptick in activity there amongst the coalition troops at all?

WHITBECK: None that we have been able to monitor, Leon. Of course, the U.S. troops are out here pretty much all the time monitoring the streets. There's been little activity on the street. There was a minor protest this morning, but that was related to the whole political angle to this.

A lot of people of course are interested in events as they unfold here and I would think would be very interested to know the identities of those four people who were killed in that house up in northern Iraq.

HARRIS: (UNINTELLIGIBLE) of course, we'll have to wait for that positive identification process to actually play itself out. Harris Whitbeck in Baghdad, thank you very much.

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 - 11:34   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
LEON HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: We're going to try to see if we can get some more information on this breaking news that is coming in to us just within the last 10 minutes or so here, folks. You're looking here at pictures we are bringing in to us directly here from Mosul. And we'll apologize in advance if anything shows up on the screen that may be a bit unsettling. We've seen some rather graphic pictures on this screen here in the last few minutes here.
But what we're see here is the aftermath of a major raid on a house, that we are told -- a large house in Mosul in northern Iraq. And right now senior U.S. officials are telling us in that the aftermath of this raid there are no people right now who have been captured from the raid. However there have been four bodies recovered from that house.

They're also telling us that it is likely -- they're that trying right now to confirm this and identify with absolute certainty -- but it is likely that two of the four bodies taken out of this home in Mosul may be those of Saddam Hussein's sons, Uday and Qusay Hussein.

Let's go now to our Harris Whitbeck who is standing by in Baghdad and see what he has been able to learned as this news has been eking out around the world right now. Harris, what is the latest from there?

HARRIS WHITBECK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Leon, a few more details about what happened at that house in Mosul. Apparently U.S. soldiers were investigating the owner of that house. And let me preface this by saying this is all information from the al Jazeera television network who spoke to eyewitnesses on the ground.

Apparently U.S. soldiers were talking to the owner of this house, who apparently was one of Saddam Hussein's cousins. During the interrogation of this man, a gunfight ensued. People from within the house started firing at the soldiers. And that is when they apparently called in more firepower and went in there basically razing that house in Mosul in northern Iraq.

The result of that gunfire, at least four people dead, according to U.S. military sources here, high-ranking allies of Saddam Hussein. And again, it was al Jazeera who said, that according to eyewitnesses, at some point during the day, Saddam Hussein's sons Uday and Qusay have been in that house. But, again no word on whether they were in that house when the gunfight ensued -- Leon.

HARRIS: Very interesting. Harris, with this news coming out here -- and I'm sure you have not had a chance to really monitor much of a reaction there in Baghdad. But has there been any noticeable reaction or uptick in activity there amongst the coalition troops at all?

WHITBECK: None that we have been able to monitor, Leon. Of course, the U.S. troops are out here pretty much all the time monitoring the streets. There's been little activity on the street. There was a minor protest this morning, but that was related to the whole political angle to this.

A lot of people of course are interested in events as they unfold here and I would think would be very interested to know the identities of those four people who were killed in that house up in northern Iraq.

HARRIS: (UNINTELLIGIBLE) of course, we'll have to wait for that positive identification process to actually play itself out. Harris Whitbeck in Baghdad, thank you very much.

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