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No Sign of Regime's Key Players Today

Aired April 09, 2003 - 12:03   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: Christiane Amanpour, fortunately, is with me here right now in Kuwait city. Christiane, you were watching all of these dramatic developments. Someone who has covered this scene for 12 years, this story, going back to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait, you and I covered that. We watched it all unfold. This is obviously the endgame right now. When you saw that statue of Saddam Hussein in the center of Baghdad go down, what went through your mind?
CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, you know, this is the symbol of the dictatorship, and all the dictators of the world, and most notably, Saddam Hussein, who held Stalin up as his great model, had his image everywhere. It wasn't just a vanity thing, although it was, but it was the omnipotence, and the omnipresence of this man over everybody's lives. And I think that bringing it down was a realization that the end is neigh, if it has not already happened, and that slowly, slowly, they're beginning to realize that a new dawn is upon them.

Having said that, the crowds, we must remember, were not massive. They were fairly tight crowds. They were hesitant, and then they gradually got more supported and engaged in pulling down this statue. There's also been quite a lot of looting in Baghdad, so there's sort of a double-edged sword going on right now, but clearly, you can see the way they're welcoming the U.S. Marines. We saw pictures of them kissing them. We saw them climbing on one of those big armored vehicle that eventually helped pull down the statue. All of that kind of symbolism I think is very important, and we are seeing it in the heart of the Iraqi capital for the first time.

BLITZER: And you know what else is amazing -- it appears, based on what we're hearing from a lot journalists on the scene, for the first time, the so-called minders, the Iraqi governmental representatives who are always attached to various journalists, didn't show up for work today. Basically, it seems nobody in Baghdad who works for the government showed up for work today, including the information minister, Mohammad Saeed Al-Sahaf.

AMANPOUR: Well, that's right, and the word was when the minders disappeared from the Palestine hotel, that meant that Sahaf had also disappeared, and we just had a crank call at the beginning of this show, but Sahaf was, as you know, for the last couple of weeks, almost a comical, but desperate bastion, one-man show of keeping that regime alive.

And even yesterday, he came to the pavement outside the Palestine hotel and somebody said to him, don't you think, sir, it's time to surrender now? And he said, no, no, don't you worry, we're safe, we'll protect you, and then of course, today, he hasn't been heard from. But, certainly, he made his mark as perhaps sort of the emblematic of the propaganda of the regime over the weeks, over the months, we will defeat them. We will cause rivers of blood, we will, we will, we will. And in the end, it was a sham.

BLITZER: Here's the great danger, though, facing U.S. troops who are now on the ground in Baghdad in significant numbers. The Iraqi Special Republican Guard, the elite forces, 20,000 or so, who may have been in the Iraqi capital, the Special Security Organization, the paramilitary, the paramilitary forces, who were in Baghdad, supposedly protecting vital government infrastructure over there, many of them have simply removed their uniforms, and are trying to blend into the crowd.

Now, you don't know if they are simply going to walk away from all of this, or they're going to step back and try to fight another day?

AMANPOUR: Well, isn't that the great unknown. I would say the way things are going, I would bet it is sort of a meltback and a surrender from them. Although you cannot discount the possibility that there could be hit-and-run guerrilla tactics mounted. I think it would be very difficult to launch some kind of cohesive, coherent organized counterattack.

BLITZER: There is no cohesive, coherent organized military from the Iraqi side right now. Whatever is happening is very sporadic and very disorganized. A lot of disarray, based on everything we're hearing from our embedded reporters on the scene, as well as military commanders, not only in Baghdad, in the surrounding area, but throughout the military infrastructure.

Now, as the statue of Saddam Hussein was removed and...

AMANPOUR: Dragged through the streets.

BLITZER: Dragged through the streets, there was some symbolism that went way beyond just anger towards Saddam Hussein.

AMANPOUR: There was, but, you know, we have been listening to some of the reports on the ground. There's also a little wariness, a little wait-and-see attitude. People not just going up and trying to help pull the statue down, but watching, waiting, seeing what it's going to be like.

Look, I remember being in Baghdad 12 years ago, and I remember when the cease-fire was announced, and it was clear, finally that the Americans had won and pushed Saddam out of Kuwait, people came up to me in the street, and remember, these were people who lived under the dictatorship. They were sure that the Marines were coming up to Baghdad then. I remember them coming up to us on camera saying, when are the Marines coming? When are they coming to Baghdad? Then we had the crushing of the rebellions in the north and south. And from then on, these people remained silent, because they knew that if they said anything, that they would risk their lives. BLITZER: They felt betrayed then and you can't blame them for being hesitant even now, when they see the U.S. Marines, U.S. Army soldiers, with the armored personnel carriers, with battle tanks in the heart of the capital. You still have to say to yourself, if you are an Iraqi, you know what, wait another day or two before I jump out in the streets and celebrate.

AMANPOUR: And that is happening, apparently. People are saying that they really want to wait and see, and they're not just talking about waiting and seeing whether the Americans stay, but about whether their basic services will be in tact, whether they'll have their salaries, those who still have jobs, whether the oil-for-food program will start again, which most of the people of this country depend on. There are a lot of challenges.

BLITZER: All right.

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 April 9, 2003 - 12:03   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Christiane Amanpour, fortunately, is with me here right now in Kuwait city. Christiane, you were watching all of these dramatic developments. Someone who has covered this scene for 12 years, this story, going back to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait, you and I covered that. We watched it all unfold. This is obviously the endgame right now. When you saw that statue of Saddam Hussein in the center of Baghdad go down, what went through your mind?
CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, you know, this is the symbol of the dictatorship, and all the dictators of the world, and most notably, Saddam Hussein, who held Stalin up as his great model, had his image everywhere. It wasn't just a vanity thing, although it was, but it was the omnipotence, and the omnipresence of this man over everybody's lives. And I think that bringing it down was a realization that the end is neigh, if it has not already happened, and that slowly, slowly, they're beginning to realize that a new dawn is upon them.

Having said that, the crowds, we must remember, were not massive. They were fairly tight crowds. They were hesitant, and then they gradually got more supported and engaged in pulling down this statue. There's also been quite a lot of looting in Baghdad, so there's sort of a double-edged sword going on right now, but clearly, you can see the way they're welcoming the U.S. Marines. We saw pictures of them kissing them. We saw them climbing on one of those big armored vehicle that eventually helped pull down the statue. All of that kind of symbolism I think is very important, and we are seeing it in the heart of the Iraqi capital for the first time.

BLITZER: And you know what else is amazing -- it appears, based on what we're hearing from a lot journalists on the scene, for the first time, the so-called minders, the Iraqi governmental representatives who are always attached to various journalists, didn't show up for work today. Basically, it seems nobody in Baghdad who works for the government showed up for work today, including the information minister, Mohammad Saeed Al-Sahaf.

AMANPOUR: Well, that's right, and the word was when the minders disappeared from the Palestine hotel, that meant that Sahaf had also disappeared, and we just had a crank call at the beginning of this show, but Sahaf was, as you know, for the last couple of weeks, almost a comical, but desperate bastion, one-man show of keeping that regime alive.

And even yesterday, he came to the pavement outside the Palestine hotel and somebody said to him, don't you think, sir, it's time to surrender now? And he said, no, no, don't you worry, we're safe, we'll protect you, and then of course, today, he hasn't been heard from. But, certainly, he made his mark as perhaps sort of the emblematic of the propaganda of the regime over the weeks, over the months, we will defeat them. We will cause rivers of blood, we will, we will, we will. And in the end, it was a sham.

BLITZER: Here's the great danger, though, facing U.S. troops who are now on the ground in Baghdad in significant numbers. The Iraqi Special Republican Guard, the elite forces, 20,000 or so, who may have been in the Iraqi capital, the Special Security Organization, the paramilitary, the paramilitary forces, who were in Baghdad, supposedly protecting vital government infrastructure over there, many of them have simply removed their uniforms, and are trying to blend into the crowd.

Now, you don't know if they are simply going to walk away from all of this, or they're going to step back and try to fight another day?

AMANPOUR: Well, isn't that the great unknown. I would say the way things are going, I would bet it is sort of a meltback and a surrender from them. Although you cannot discount the possibility that there could be hit-and-run guerrilla tactics mounted. I think it would be very difficult to launch some kind of cohesive, coherent organized counterattack.

BLITZER: There is no cohesive, coherent organized military from the Iraqi side right now. Whatever is happening is very sporadic and very disorganized. A lot of disarray, based on everything we're hearing from our embedded reporters on the scene, as well as military commanders, not only in Baghdad, in the surrounding area, but throughout the military infrastructure.

Now, as the statue of Saddam Hussein was removed and...

AMANPOUR: Dragged through the streets.

BLITZER: Dragged through the streets, there was some symbolism that went way beyond just anger towards Saddam Hussein.

AMANPOUR: There was, but, you know, we have been listening to some of the reports on the ground. There's also a little wariness, a little wait-and-see attitude. People not just going up and trying to help pull the statue down, but watching, waiting, seeing what it's going to be like.

Look, I remember being in Baghdad 12 years ago, and I remember when the cease-fire was announced, and it was clear, finally that the Americans had won and pushed Saddam out of Kuwait, people came up to me in the street, and remember, these were people who lived under the dictatorship. They were sure that the Marines were coming up to Baghdad then. I remember them coming up to us on camera saying, when are the Marines coming? When are they coming to Baghdad? Then we had the crushing of the rebellions in the north and south. And from then on, these people remained silent, because they knew that if they said anything, that they would risk their lives. BLITZER: They felt betrayed then and you can't blame them for being hesitant even now, when they see the U.S. Marines, U.S. Army soldiers, with the armored personnel carriers, with battle tanks in the heart of the capital. You still have to say to yourself, if you are an Iraqi, you know what, wait another day or two before I jump out in the streets and celebrate.

AMANPOUR: And that is happening, apparently. People are saying that they really want to wait and see, and they're not just talking about waiting and seeing whether the Americans stay, but about whether their basic services will be in tact, whether they'll have their salaries, those who still have jobs, whether the oil-for-food program will start again, which most of the people of this country depend on. There are a lot of challenges.

BLITZER: All right.

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