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Weapons Inspectors Visit Baghdad Sites

Aired December 09, 2002 - 10:11   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.


LEON HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Now as officials there at the U.N. wade through Iraq's report, weapons inspectors converged on a military industrial complex northwest of Baghdad.
For the latest on that, let's go to the Iraqi capital now. CNN's senior international correspondent Nic Robertson standing by there.

Hello -- Nic.

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Leon.

Well that was the Fulaggi (ph) chemical complex, about 16 kilometers, 40 miles northwest of Baghdad. A team of inspectors went in there today. There were 15 of them. They were the chemical, biological and nuclear experts.

Now some of those U.N. scientists had only just arrived in the country on Sunday, so some of them getting their first trip out, their first inspection. It lasted about four hours. We could see them on the site taking photographs of some of the tagged equipment, that's the dual-use equipment that they've been monitoring -- U.N. inspectors have been monitoring there over several years.

After the inspectors left, we got in to the site. We were told that it was a site that produces chlorine products and fenol (ph) products, products such as some types of detergents and also some types of water purifiers.

Now interesting, the director of the chlorine plant there told us that he had with U.N. inspectors been in three-and-a-half-hour questioning session with the U.N. inspectors. They'd been asking him what did the plant produce, where did it procure it from, where did it sell the products to, how many people were employed? He said these were the same questions the U.N. inspectors used to ask when they came in the 1990s.

When I asked him if he was prepared as can be called for by the U.N. weapons inspectors to be interviewed outside of the country, he said no, that he was quite happy to be interviewed in private but in Iraq. He said he was Iraqi and, therefore, he didn't want to leave the country -- Leon.

HARRIS: Nic Robertson, reporting live for us from Baghdad. Thank you, Nic.

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Aired December 9, 2002 - 10:11   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
LEON HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Now as officials there at the U.N. wade through Iraq's report, weapons inspectors converged on a military industrial complex northwest of Baghdad.
For the latest on that, let's go to the Iraqi capital now. CNN's senior international correspondent Nic Robertson standing by there.

Hello -- Nic.

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Leon.

Well that was the Fulaggi (ph) chemical complex, about 16 kilometers, 40 miles northwest of Baghdad. A team of inspectors went in there today. There were 15 of them. They were the chemical, biological and nuclear experts.

Now some of those U.N. scientists had only just arrived in the country on Sunday, so some of them getting their first trip out, their first inspection. It lasted about four hours. We could see them on the site taking photographs of some of the tagged equipment, that's the dual-use equipment that they've been monitoring -- U.N. inspectors have been monitoring there over several years.

After the inspectors left, we got in to the site. We were told that it was a site that produces chlorine products and fenol (ph) products, products such as some types of detergents and also some types of water purifiers.

Now interesting, the director of the chlorine plant there told us that he had with U.N. inspectors been in three-and-a-half-hour questioning session with the U.N. inspectors. They'd been asking him what did the plant produce, where did it procure it from, where did it sell the products to, how many people were employed? He said these were the same questions the U.N. inspectors used to ask when they came in the 1990s.

When I asked him if he was prepared as can be called for by the U.N. weapons inspectors to be interviewed outside of the country, he said no, that he was quite happy to be interviewed in private but in Iraq. He said he was Iraqi and, therefore, he didn't want to leave the country -- Leon.

HARRIS: Nic Robertson, reporting live for us from Baghdad. Thank you, Nic.

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