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CNN Live Saturday
Bush Condemns Violence in Iran
Aired June 14, 2003 - 18:14 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.
ANDREA KOPPEL, CNN ANCHOR: Iran's Islamic rulers have threatened a crack down and after four days of the most recent protests things go bloody on the streets of Tehran. Armed supporters of hard-line clerics clashed with university students calling for reforms.
President Bush has condemned the violence. He is -- we are joined now by Chris Burns, who is in Kennebunkport, Maine, where he is monitoring things and helping to monitor the president, who is spending a long holiday weekend up there.
Chris, what's the president saying?
CHRIS BURNS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Sure. Well, Andrea, the White House had been in recent days and weeks supporting, at least, expressing sympathy for these pro-democracy student demonstrators.
Today, however, it is criticizing this violent backlash by what is believed to be vigilante Islamic groups sympathizing with the hard line inside the Iranian government. It sounds complicated, but that is what's going on right now.
And the government here, the White House, issue this statement earlier this afternoon, saying:
"The United States views with great concern the use of violence against Iranian students peacefully expressing their political views. We are alarmed at reports of arrests and provocative actions taken against students by regime forces, and call upon the regime to protect the human rights of the students and to release those who have been arrested."
Now, this comes amid a power struggle between hard-line clerics, lead by Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and the pro-democracy people who are lead by President Mohammed Khatami.
And at the same time the White House has been critical of the Iranian government on other issues, particularly about the alleged nuclear weapons program that the White House believes that the Iranians are developing. And also accusing the Iranians of harboring and sheltering and even possibly supporting terrorist groups.
Back to you, Andrea.
KOPPEL: Chris, the Iranian government has said that a lot of that criticism, that you just alluded to, there criticism by the Bush administration of an alleged nuclear weapons program, criticism of the Iranians for allegedly fomenting dissent in southern Iraq, that in fact the U.S. government has been behind these demonstrations in Tehran. Do you think there anything to that?
BURNS: Well, there have been reports in Washington about possible meetings among administration officials seeking to undermine the Iranian government. Obviously, it's no secret that President Bush had listed Iran on his axis of evil list. And so obviously Washington is very unfriendly with, at least, the more hard-line elements inside the government there.
However, there also had been criticism that perhaps it would have been better to empower and support those more reformist elements in the government led by President Khatami. So, it is a big question, as far as overt efforts by the U.S. government. We're not seeing that, but perhaps covertly that could be another story, Andrea.
KOPPEL: Chris Burns in an idyllic setting there in Kennebunkport, Maine.
BURNS: Absolutely.
KOPPEL: Thank you very much.
BURNS: Thank you.
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 June 14, 2003 - 18:14 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ANDREA KOPPEL, CNN ANCHOR: Iran's Islamic rulers have threatened a crack down and after four days of the most recent protests things go bloody on the streets of Tehran. Armed supporters of hard-line clerics clashed with university students calling for reforms.
President Bush has condemned the violence. He is -- we are joined now by Chris Burns, who is in Kennebunkport, Maine, where he is monitoring things and helping to monitor the president, who is spending a long holiday weekend up there.
Chris, what's the president saying?
CHRIS BURNS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Sure. Well, Andrea, the White House had been in recent days and weeks supporting, at least, expressing sympathy for these pro-democracy student demonstrators.
Today, however, it is criticizing this violent backlash by what is believed to be vigilante Islamic groups sympathizing with the hard line inside the Iranian government. It sounds complicated, but that is what's going on right now.
And the government here, the White House, issue this statement earlier this afternoon, saying:
"The United States views with great concern the use of violence against Iranian students peacefully expressing their political views. We are alarmed at reports of arrests and provocative actions taken against students by regime forces, and call upon the regime to protect the human rights of the students and to release those who have been arrested."
Now, this comes amid a power struggle between hard-line clerics, lead by Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and the pro-democracy people who are lead by President Mohammed Khatami.
And at the same time the White House has been critical of the Iranian government on other issues, particularly about the alleged nuclear weapons program that the White House believes that the Iranians are developing. And also accusing the Iranians of harboring and sheltering and even possibly supporting terrorist groups.
Back to you, Andrea.
KOPPEL: Chris, the Iranian government has said that a lot of that criticism, that you just alluded to, there criticism by the Bush administration of an alleged nuclear weapons program, criticism of the Iranians for allegedly fomenting dissent in southern Iraq, that in fact the U.S. government has been behind these demonstrations in Tehran. Do you think there anything to that?
BURNS: Well, there have been reports in Washington about possible meetings among administration officials seeking to undermine the Iranian government. Obviously, it's no secret that President Bush had listed Iran on his axis of evil list. And so obviously Washington is very unfriendly with, at least, the more hard-line elements inside the government there.
However, there also had been criticism that perhaps it would have been better to empower and support those more reformist elements in the government led by President Khatami. So, it is a big question, as far as overt efforts by the U.S. government. We're not seeing that, but perhaps covertly that could be another story, Andrea.
KOPPEL: Chris Burns in an idyllic setting there in Kennebunkport, Maine.
BURNS: Absolutely.
KOPPEL: Thank you very much.
BURNS: Thank you.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
