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American Morning
Ayatollah's Funeral in Najaf
Aired September 02, 2003 - 07:06 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.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: In Iraq, hundreds of thousands of Shiite Muslims have been streaming toward the city of Najaf. They're taking part in that massive three-day funeral profession for Ayatollah Mohammed Baqir al-Hakim. He was killed in Friday's car bombing in that town.
Ben Wedeman live in Najaf watching the procession for us today.
Ben -- good afternoon there.
BEN WEDEMAN, CNN CAIRO BUREAU CHIEF: Yes, hi, Bill.
Yes, as you said, hundreds of thousands of people have made their way to Najaf, this Shiite holy city, from throughout Iraq, from Baghdad, from Basra, from the entire Shiite parts of the country. They have come here to mourn their assassinated leader, Ayatollah Mohammed Baqir al-Hakim. He, of course, was the head of the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq.
Now, we watched as his coffin was brought into the city, surrounded by thousands and thousands of chanting followers. They were shouting that they wanted to see the death of former members of the Iraqi Ba'ath Party. That Ba'ath Party led, of course, by Saddam Hussein, a man widely reviled by Shiites, blamed for the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people over his 30-year rule of the country.
They also are calling for more action against these Ba'ath Party members. And in last few days, Bill, we have gotten many reports of attacks here in Najaf on some of those former officials.
Now, regarding the investigation, apparently the FBI is now going to be involved in that.
And earlier today, we heard Dr. Ahmed Chalabi, who is the head of the Iraqi National Congress and now the rotating head of the coalition-appointed Governing Council. He's described the late Ayatollah as a man who is widely respected by all Iraqis. He said that he believes the investigation is eventually going to follow a trail that will lead to Saddam Hussein, the remnants of the Ba'ath Party and what he described as foreign elements who have entered the country since the fall of Saddam Hussein.
One last bit of news is that Iraqi police has apparently found in Najaf yet another car filled with explosives -- Bill.
HEMMER: Ben Wedeman, still a precarious situation there. Ben, thanks. We'll watch it throughout the day here. 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 September 2, 2003 - 07:06 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: In Iraq, hundreds of thousands of Shiite Muslims have been streaming toward the city of Najaf. They're taking part in that massive three-day funeral profession for Ayatollah Mohammed Baqir al-Hakim. He was killed in Friday's car bombing in that town.
Ben Wedeman live in Najaf watching the procession for us today.
Ben -- good afternoon there.
BEN WEDEMAN, CNN CAIRO BUREAU CHIEF: Yes, hi, Bill.
Yes, as you said, hundreds of thousands of people have made their way to Najaf, this Shiite holy city, from throughout Iraq, from Baghdad, from Basra, from the entire Shiite parts of the country. They have come here to mourn their assassinated leader, Ayatollah Mohammed Baqir al-Hakim. He, of course, was the head of the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq.
Now, we watched as his coffin was brought into the city, surrounded by thousands and thousands of chanting followers. They were shouting that they wanted to see the death of former members of the Iraqi Ba'ath Party. That Ba'ath Party led, of course, by Saddam Hussein, a man widely reviled by Shiites, blamed for the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people over his 30-year rule of the country.
They also are calling for more action against these Ba'ath Party members. And in last few days, Bill, we have gotten many reports of attacks here in Najaf on some of those former officials.
Now, regarding the investigation, apparently the FBI is now going to be involved in that.
And earlier today, we heard Dr. Ahmed Chalabi, who is the head of the Iraqi National Congress and now the rotating head of the coalition-appointed Governing Council. He's described the late Ayatollah as a man who is widely respected by all Iraqis. He said that he believes the investigation is eventually going to follow a trail that will lead to Saddam Hussein, the remnants of the Ba'ath Party and what he described as foreign elements who have entered the country since the fall of Saddam Hussein.
One last bit of news is that Iraqi police has apparently found in Najaf yet another car filled with explosives -- Bill.
HEMMER: Ben Wedeman, still a precarious situation there. Ben, thanks. We'll watch it throughout the day here. TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.
