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CNN Live At Daybreak
America's New War: Anti American Protests in Afghanistan
Aired September 26, 2001 - 08:06 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.
PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: Take two with Christiane Amanpour here. You have to understand that the electronic plans are extremely complicated to bring you any of the news we've brought you from northern Afghanistan this morning and Islamabad, Pakistan, which is exactly where we find Christiane this morning -- good morning, Christiane.
Bring us up to date on what you know from the country where you're stationed now, and what you can tell us about those anti American protests in Afghanistan.
CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, several developments today. There are reports and pictures reaching us of those anti American demonstrations in Kabul, the capital.
Basically, we are told that very, very many protestors -- a large number -- they say thousands went up to the abandoned U.S. Embassy. It's been abandoned since 1989. The United States has not had an operating embassy there since then, but that it is being kept in the, you know, in the eventuality that perhaps the U.S. might eventually go back when relations are restored.
In any event, one of the biggest anti American demonstrations that have taken place in Afghanistan since this crisis. Demonstrators threw rocks, they burned parts of the building, and they burned vehicles outside. We're told that the Taliban forces then tried to push them back and finally managed to push the protestors back.
Now, here in Pakistan, there has been the first gathering -- big gathering of people in support of the international community. One of the main Pakistani political parties held a big rally, which apparently is still ongoing. We're waiting for pictures of that to reach us so we can broadcast them. And that would be the first big rally in support of the international community. We are told that there are thousands of people at that place.
In another development, the situation regarding the refugees and the humanitarian situation inside Afghanistan with the fear that there may be tens if not hundreds of thousands of Afghans trying to flee any military advance or indeed worsening food shortages. The Pakistani government is appealing for about $120 million in immediate aid to deal with this potential new influx. But it's also saying that it has no immediate plans to open its borders and will reserve the decision on that should the situation reach what they determine as crisis point -- Paula.
ZAHN: Christiane, that may all be true, but meanwhile the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees apparently, according to a report I've just been handed, has surveyed 75 potential sites for new refugee camps and, I guess, has already ordered some 20,000 tents to be deployed to the area in the event that those borders are opened up.
So certainly there is an expectation, isn't there, at some point more people will be allowed into Pakistan?
AMANPOUR: Yes, there is definitely an expectation and certainly a huge hope. They are going to try to station these tents, and the UN officials here have told us also they're going to try to preposition along six points surrounding Afghanistan in the Central Asian region, Iran and Pakistan six points of emergency supplies that they can rush in as soon as they are able to do so. And also they are trying now to send in emergency food via the Northern Alliance territory.
ZAHN: And, Christiane, before we let you go this morning, describe to our viewers this morning just how poor some of these people are that are on the move, and what they're subjected to at the border once they get there.
AMANPOUR: Well, even in the best of times, Afghanistan is perhaps one of the poorest countries in the world. In terms of all the leading human indicators that tell people about standard of living, it ranks almost at the very bottom.
We heard some really terrifying statistics yesterday, that I may already have broadcast, about the women and children there, for instance. Because of the appalling conditions, even before this crisis, one in every four children dies before it reaches the age of five. Every 15 minutes, a woman giving birth dies in childbirth, because of entirely preventable causes, and this is the worst record outside of Africa.
They have had about four years of massive drought, which has caused a huge shortfall in food supplies. And the UN is saying, while there isn't a famine now, there are starting to be what they recognize as pre-famine conditions. And they think that within several months, unless there's something done to relieve this situation, they may find famine conditions in Afghanistan.
So there's very little infrastructure, very little support within the country of its own, and so many people -- about two million people in Afghanistan of a population of some 25 million -- depend entirely on and entirely on United Nations and international assistance. And without that, they are pretty much left to die essentially, and that's the grim reality.
ZAHN: All right. We hate to leave it on that note, but we need to -- Christiane Amanpour, thanks for that report. We will see you throughout the morning.
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