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Christmas Eve Blast in Baghdad
Aired December 24, 2003 - 13:00 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.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: A Christmas Eve blast in Baghdad near a hotel popular with Westerners. It comes as coalition troops launch a massive new campaign called "Operation Iron Grip."
CNN's Satinder Bindra now live from Baghdad with the latest from there -- Satinder.
SATINDER BINDRA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Kyra, about a half hour ago, there was a blast here, just opposite our hotel, and we gather this blast occurred just behind the Sheraton Hotel, which is just across the road from me. Shortly after this blast, we heard a huge amount of automatic gunfire.
Now, according to the U.S. military, they're saying that this blast was probably caused by a rocket propelled grenade.
And we sent a crew out into the street. The Sheraton Hotel is OK. There are no apparent injuries, and there are no signs of damage to any buildings close by.
Back to you.
PHILLIPS: Satinder, I understand you actually felt the explosion. Tell us, what did you feel? And where did you go from there?
BINDRA: Well, I was getting ready for a live shot, facing the camera like this, when the blast went off just over my left shoulder. Then we saw some smoke coming from behind the Sheraton Hotel. People started running about the street, which I can see from my position.
And quite clearly, this caused some concern here in Baghdad, because today Iraq has been rocked by three bomb explosions, the first occurred just north of here in Samarra. This was a roadside bomb in which three U.S. soldiers were killed. Another bomb blast here in Baghdad, this morning, in which a bus driver and a passenger were killed.
Also today, in the northern part of Iraq, in Irbil, which is in the Kurdish autonomous zone, a suicide bomber blew up a bomb right next to a government building. The suicide bomber was killed, and so, too, was another civilian. So it's been a day of blasts. And with this latest blast, of course, some panic here in downtown Baghdad.
But I must repeat there have been no injuries, at least as far as we can tell, for the moment. Back to you. PHILLIPS: Satinder, that's definitely good news. And I know that security has been increased, especially around the holidays. What do you know about the security around the Sheraton, and do you think this made a difference with regard to the effects of this attack?
BINDRA: Well, we can't say, because a rocket-propelled grenade is normally a shoulder-fired weapon, and it can be fired from outside the safety zone, right here, right next to the Sheraton Hotel.
But over the past two days, I must add that senior coalition figures have been telling us they expect a step up in attacks from insurgents over the holiday season, which is why yesterday, the coalition authorities launched another raid. They sent helicopter gunships. They sent attack helicopters. These helicopters attacked positions from where the U.S. military says, in the past insurgents have been hurling some mortar rounds at them.
Back to you.
PHILLIPS: Satinder Bindra, live from Baghdad, 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 December 24, 2003 - 13:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: A Christmas Eve blast in Baghdad near a hotel popular with Westerners. It comes as coalition troops launch a massive new campaign called "Operation Iron Grip."
CNN's Satinder Bindra now live from Baghdad with the latest from there -- Satinder.
SATINDER BINDRA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Kyra, about a half hour ago, there was a blast here, just opposite our hotel, and we gather this blast occurred just behind the Sheraton Hotel, which is just across the road from me. Shortly after this blast, we heard a huge amount of automatic gunfire.
Now, according to the U.S. military, they're saying that this blast was probably caused by a rocket propelled grenade.
And we sent a crew out into the street. The Sheraton Hotel is OK. There are no apparent injuries, and there are no signs of damage to any buildings close by.
Back to you.
PHILLIPS: Satinder, I understand you actually felt the explosion. Tell us, what did you feel? And where did you go from there?
BINDRA: Well, I was getting ready for a live shot, facing the camera like this, when the blast went off just over my left shoulder. Then we saw some smoke coming from behind the Sheraton Hotel. People started running about the street, which I can see from my position.
And quite clearly, this caused some concern here in Baghdad, because today Iraq has been rocked by three bomb explosions, the first occurred just north of here in Samarra. This was a roadside bomb in which three U.S. soldiers were killed. Another bomb blast here in Baghdad, this morning, in which a bus driver and a passenger were killed.
Also today, in the northern part of Iraq, in Irbil, which is in the Kurdish autonomous zone, a suicide bomber blew up a bomb right next to a government building. The suicide bomber was killed, and so, too, was another civilian. So it's been a day of blasts. And with this latest blast, of course, some panic here in downtown Baghdad.
But I must repeat there have been no injuries, at least as far as we can tell, for the moment. Back to you. PHILLIPS: Satinder, that's definitely good news. And I know that security has been increased, especially around the holidays. What do you know about the security around the Sheraton, and do you think this made a difference with regard to the effects of this attack?
BINDRA: Well, we can't say, because a rocket-propelled grenade is normally a shoulder-fired weapon, and it can be fired from outside the safety zone, right here, right next to the Sheraton Hotel.
But over the past two days, I must add that senior coalition figures have been telling us they expect a step up in attacks from insurgents over the holiday season, which is why yesterday, the coalition authorities launched another raid. They sent helicopter gunships. They sent attack helicopters. These helicopters attacked positions from where the U.S. military says, in the past insurgents have been hurling some mortar rounds at them.
Back to you.
PHILLIPS: Satinder Bindra, live from Baghdad, 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
