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Four More Marines Missing in Iraq
Aired March 28, 2003 - 15:35 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.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: U.S. Central Command reports four more Marines are missing after another day of heavy fighting with Iraqi forces in Nasiriya. So far, their names have not been released.
CNN's Alessio Vinci has more now on the Marines in combat in southern Iraq.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ALESSIO VINCI, CNN ROME BUREAU CHEF (voice-over): Hostilities in Nasiriya prevented the Marines from recovering the bodies of their foreign comrades earlier. Most still lying in the burned out armored vehicle five days after one of the bloodiest battles of the war in Iraq. Officers say they have found the body parts of at least seven Marines, but the current total of troops killed in Nasiriya is now 16; more are still missing. Captain Scott Dyer (ph) helped recover his friends and colleagues.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When we got down into their forces that were there, recovered five of the bodies that were there. And then some civilians came out and showed us where they had buried two others and returned to us the personal effects of at least one of the Marines that was there. Some photographs, some mail, things like that.
VINCI: Struggling to keep his emotions in check, the commanding officer personally oversaw the recovery effort, making sure the bodies were treated with dignity and respect, even under the tough conditions of the front lines. Medics performed the first field examination to identify some of the victims. A DNA test will be performed for final positive identification.
(on camera): From here, the bodies will be flown to a staging area and prepared for a final journey back home.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We ask for your blessing got almighty.
VINCI (voice-over): A Marine chaplain led the troops in prayer. A moment of solace and comfort for many here.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The Marines care for their own, and that's in life and in death. And so they see their duty not complete until they're resting in their homeland with their families.
VINCI: Senior Marines here say the Nasiriya fight was the fiercest the Marine Corps has been involved in since Hue City in Vietnam, and promised that Marines missing will be found and returned home. Alessio Vinci, CNN with the U.S. Marines in Nasiriya, Iraq. (END VIDEOTAPE)
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 March 28, 2003 - 15:35 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: U.S. Central Command reports four more Marines are missing after another day of heavy fighting with Iraqi forces in Nasiriya. So far, their names have not been released.
CNN's Alessio Vinci has more now on the Marines in combat in southern Iraq.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ALESSIO VINCI, CNN ROME BUREAU CHEF (voice-over): Hostilities in Nasiriya prevented the Marines from recovering the bodies of their foreign comrades earlier. Most still lying in the burned out armored vehicle five days after one of the bloodiest battles of the war in Iraq. Officers say they have found the body parts of at least seven Marines, but the current total of troops killed in Nasiriya is now 16; more are still missing. Captain Scott Dyer (ph) helped recover his friends and colleagues.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When we got down into their forces that were there, recovered five of the bodies that were there. And then some civilians came out and showed us where they had buried two others and returned to us the personal effects of at least one of the Marines that was there. Some photographs, some mail, things like that.
VINCI: Struggling to keep his emotions in check, the commanding officer personally oversaw the recovery effort, making sure the bodies were treated with dignity and respect, even under the tough conditions of the front lines. Medics performed the first field examination to identify some of the victims. A DNA test will be performed for final positive identification.
(on camera): From here, the bodies will be flown to a staging area and prepared for a final journey back home.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We ask for your blessing got almighty.
VINCI (voice-over): A Marine chaplain led the troops in prayer. A moment of solace and comfort for many here.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The Marines care for their own, and that's in life and in death. And so they see their duty not complete until they're resting in their homeland with their families.
VINCI: Senior Marines here say the Nasiriya fight was the fiercest the Marine Corps has been involved in since Hue City in Vietnam, and promised that Marines missing will be found and returned home. Alessio Vinci, CNN with the U.S. Marines in Nasiriya, Iraq. (END VIDEOTAPE)
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
