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CNN Sunday Morning
Iraq Faces Friday Deadline for Accepting U.N. Resolution
Aired November 10, 2002 - 09:03 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.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Iraq faces a Friday deadline to notify the U.N. whether it accepts the terms of the Security Council resolution to disarm. CNN's Jane Arraf is in Baghdad now with the latest from there. Hello, Jane.
JANE ARRAF, CNN BAGHDAD BUREAU CHIEF: Hi, Heidi. Well, they're quite aware of that deadline here. Iraqi media has just reported that President Saddam Hussein is asking for an emergency meeting of the National Assembly. Now, that assembly is supposed to discuss the resolution and send its position to the Revolutionary Command Council, the highest body in land, headed by the Iraqi president.
Now, it is a rubber-stamp parliament, and it is expected, rather, to accept that resolution. What they've been hearing on the sidelines of the Arab League conference that's going to in Cairo, Iraq's foreign minister is there, and he said that Iraq is considering the resolution, but all of their allies, all of their Arab allies seem to be telling them pretty clearly that they have no choice but to accept that. And that includes Syria, the only Arab member of the Security Council which voted in favor of the resolution.
Now, the Iraqi government has been trying to prepare its people a little bit for the return of the weapons inspectors. And commentary last night on Iraqi television, the comment again was about the evil American administration and its plans to attack Iraq. But also interestingly, pictures of the weapons inspectors, and continued statements from the commentator that Iraq has no weapons of mass destruction, and that the weapons inspectors will prove it -- Heidi.
COLLINS: Jane, this pressure from the Arab world, do you think it will be enough for them to sign this resolution, especially with a man like Saddam Hussein?
ARRAF: Well, the pressure has persisted long enough and strongly enough that the message has actually gotten through, it seems, to the palace here, to the Iraqi president, that indeed, he has no choice.
Now, if he were to reject the resolution, he would be left standing virtually alone. There is really no country that has much significance that's come forward to say that it would still support Iraq if it rejected this resolution. Everyone who matters virtually in the Arab world, in the region and in the rest of the world, is telling the Iraqi president he really has to take this chance. I mean, they're telling him through diplomatic means, through envoys, and all sorts of other ways that they have of reaching him.
Now that message seems to have gotten through, and indeed Iraq does seem prepared to accept this resolution -- Heidi.
COLLINS: Interesting. All right, Jane Arraf, coming to us 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 November 10, 2002 - 09:03 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: Iraq faces a Friday deadline to notify the U.N. whether it accepts the terms of the Security Council resolution to disarm. CNN's Jane Arraf is in Baghdad now with the latest from there. Hello, Jane.
JANE ARRAF, CNN BAGHDAD BUREAU CHIEF: Hi, Heidi. Well, they're quite aware of that deadline here. Iraqi media has just reported that President Saddam Hussein is asking for an emergency meeting of the National Assembly. Now, that assembly is supposed to discuss the resolution and send its position to the Revolutionary Command Council, the highest body in land, headed by the Iraqi president.
Now, it is a rubber-stamp parliament, and it is expected, rather, to accept that resolution. What they've been hearing on the sidelines of the Arab League conference that's going to in Cairo, Iraq's foreign minister is there, and he said that Iraq is considering the resolution, but all of their allies, all of their Arab allies seem to be telling them pretty clearly that they have no choice but to accept that. And that includes Syria, the only Arab member of the Security Council which voted in favor of the resolution.
Now, the Iraqi government has been trying to prepare its people a little bit for the return of the weapons inspectors. And commentary last night on Iraqi television, the comment again was about the evil American administration and its plans to attack Iraq. But also interestingly, pictures of the weapons inspectors, and continued statements from the commentator that Iraq has no weapons of mass destruction, and that the weapons inspectors will prove it -- Heidi.
COLLINS: Jane, this pressure from the Arab world, do you think it will be enough for them to sign this resolution, especially with a man like Saddam Hussein?
ARRAF: Well, the pressure has persisted long enough and strongly enough that the message has actually gotten through, it seems, to the palace here, to the Iraqi president, that indeed, he has no choice.
Now, if he were to reject the resolution, he would be left standing virtually alone. There is really no country that has much significance that's come forward to say that it would still support Iraq if it rejected this resolution. Everyone who matters virtually in the Arab world, in the region and in the rest of the world, is telling the Iraqi president he really has to take this chance. I mean, they're telling him through diplomatic means, through envoys, and all sorts of other ways that they have of reaching him.
Now that message seems to have gotten through, and indeed Iraq does seem prepared to accept this resolution -- Heidi.
COLLINS: Interesting. All right, Jane Arraf, coming to us 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
