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CNN Sunday Morning
U.K. Forces have Captured Iraqi General
Aired March 30, 2003 - 06:08 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.
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: We are going to break into this press conference that is going on in Baghdad, because all morning long we have been following a developing story of a British operation very near the city of Basra. There had been early reports of some sort of significant capture of an Iraqi military official.
For an update on that, we're going to go right now to CNN's Tom Mintier who is in Doha, Qatar at CENTCOM headquarters.
Tom, what do you have?
TOM MINTIER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Anderson, he will become the highest ranking POW in the POW camp that's being built. British forces, British commandos in Basra have captured an Iraqi general who is now listed as a POW.
Joining us now is Group Captain Al Lockwood.
Captain Lockwood, what can you tell us about this capture in Basra?
GROUP CAPTAIN AL LOCKWOOD, BRITISH MILITARY SPOKESMAN: More -- just about what you said, Tom. This morning the operation that we had against these militia forces in southeastern Basra, we captured several prisoners of war. One of them is an Iraqi general. We're hoping very much that he will be able to assist us now, as no longer a member of the regime, to overthrow Saddam Hussein's regime.
MINTIER: How importantly strategically will this be of such a high-ranking officer being taken alive as a POW?
LOCKWOOD: Well strategically probably it will show that the vulnerability of the high ranks to the Iraqi people. But tactically, we're hoping very much that he will be able to provide us with information, voluntarily of course, of what is going on in Basra when it comes to these paramilitary forces that are operating there. Obviously he's been sent there to engender support and to try and exercise some command and control.
MINTIER: So this is a staff officer that was sent from Baghdad?
LOCKWOOD: Well we aren't certain. Obviously we're hoping we'll gain that information, but we have been led to believe -- and another example of this is that we found that one of those who had been killed in the operation this morning was a Republican Guard colonel. These people we heard of before had been sent down to organize and obviously try and get these militia forces fighting against the coalition forces.
MINTIER: What about this operation by the commandos in Basra this morning, is it still ongoing?
LOCKWOOD: I believe so. We located an area of a number of paramilitary forces. The commandos went -- commandos went in to deal with them. They've obviously engaged. They forced them to flee to the west where they came across elements of the 7th Armored Brigade. I'm uncertain to whether the operation is over yet, but I believe that it must be coming to its final conclusions from reports I've heard from open source.
MINTIER: Group Captain Lockwood, thank you very much.
So there you have it, one of the -- those high-ranking officers was killed, an Iraqi colonel. And now they do say that an Iraqi general has been captured in Basra and he's currently being talked to and maybe will shed some information on what tactics the Republican Guard may be using in the Basra area.
Anderson, back to you.
COOPER: Tom, if you can keep the colonel there for a second, just got to ask you, Andrew Harding (ph), a British reporter who's embedded, said that there were perhaps a capture of between 200 to 300 Iraqi soldiers, and he wasn't sure of it, he had just sort of heard that. Is there any confirmation of that from there?
MINTIER: Could you repeat the question, Anderson?
COOPER: Sure, Andrew Harding...
MINTIER: You can't hear the question?
LOCKWOOD: No.
COOPER: Andrew Harding...
LOCKWOOD: Andrew Harding, an embedded reporter.
COOPER: Right, has said that in this operation there may have been the capture of between 200 to 300 Iraqi soldiers, junior soldiers. Any word on that?
MINTIER: In the operation in Basra there are reports from an embedded reporter that 200 to 300 Iraqi soldiers were taken prisoner. Do you have large numbers of prisoners or just these staff officers?
LOCKWOOD: No, the numbers that I have confirmed, at the moment, are quite small. But the operation has now been going on for some time, so we may have taken a greater number. Obviously once we get any details, we'll get back to you.
MINTIER: All right. So indications so far, Anderson, that not a large number of prisoners being taken, at least from the British information officers here at Doha. But they do have a general in custody as a POW and he may be able to shed some light on the situation in Basra.
COOPER: All right. Tom Mintier, thanks very much for the update. I appreciate it. Tom Mintier live from Doha, Qatar.
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 March 30, 2003 - 06:08 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: We are going to break into this press conference that is going on in Baghdad, because all morning long we have been following a developing story of a British operation very near the city of Basra. There had been early reports of some sort of significant capture of an Iraqi military official.
For an update on that, we're going to go right now to CNN's Tom Mintier who is in Doha, Qatar at CENTCOM headquarters.
Tom, what do you have?
TOM MINTIER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Anderson, he will become the highest ranking POW in the POW camp that's being built. British forces, British commandos in Basra have captured an Iraqi general who is now listed as a POW.
Joining us now is Group Captain Al Lockwood.
Captain Lockwood, what can you tell us about this capture in Basra?
GROUP CAPTAIN AL LOCKWOOD, BRITISH MILITARY SPOKESMAN: More -- just about what you said, Tom. This morning the operation that we had against these militia forces in southeastern Basra, we captured several prisoners of war. One of them is an Iraqi general. We're hoping very much that he will be able to assist us now, as no longer a member of the regime, to overthrow Saddam Hussein's regime.
MINTIER: How importantly strategically will this be of such a high-ranking officer being taken alive as a POW?
LOCKWOOD: Well strategically probably it will show that the vulnerability of the high ranks to the Iraqi people. But tactically, we're hoping very much that he will be able to provide us with information, voluntarily of course, of what is going on in Basra when it comes to these paramilitary forces that are operating there. Obviously he's been sent there to engender support and to try and exercise some command and control.
MINTIER: So this is a staff officer that was sent from Baghdad?
LOCKWOOD: Well we aren't certain. Obviously we're hoping we'll gain that information, but we have been led to believe -- and another example of this is that we found that one of those who had been killed in the operation this morning was a Republican Guard colonel. These people we heard of before had been sent down to organize and obviously try and get these militia forces fighting against the coalition forces.
MINTIER: What about this operation by the commandos in Basra this morning, is it still ongoing?
LOCKWOOD: I believe so. We located an area of a number of paramilitary forces. The commandos went -- commandos went in to deal with them. They've obviously engaged. They forced them to flee to the west where they came across elements of the 7th Armored Brigade. I'm uncertain to whether the operation is over yet, but I believe that it must be coming to its final conclusions from reports I've heard from open source.
MINTIER: Group Captain Lockwood, thank you very much.
So there you have it, one of the -- those high-ranking officers was killed, an Iraqi colonel. And now they do say that an Iraqi general has been captured in Basra and he's currently being talked to and maybe will shed some information on what tactics the Republican Guard may be using in the Basra area.
Anderson, back to you.
COOPER: Tom, if you can keep the colonel there for a second, just got to ask you, Andrew Harding (ph), a British reporter who's embedded, said that there were perhaps a capture of between 200 to 300 Iraqi soldiers, and he wasn't sure of it, he had just sort of heard that. Is there any confirmation of that from there?
MINTIER: Could you repeat the question, Anderson?
COOPER: Sure, Andrew Harding...
MINTIER: You can't hear the question?
LOCKWOOD: No.
COOPER: Andrew Harding...
LOCKWOOD: Andrew Harding, an embedded reporter.
COOPER: Right, has said that in this operation there may have been the capture of between 200 to 300 Iraqi soldiers, junior soldiers. Any word on that?
MINTIER: In the operation in Basra there are reports from an embedded reporter that 200 to 300 Iraqi soldiers were taken prisoner. Do you have large numbers of prisoners or just these staff officers?
LOCKWOOD: No, the numbers that I have confirmed, at the moment, are quite small. But the operation has now been going on for some time, so we may have taken a greater number. Obviously once we get any details, we'll get back to you.
MINTIER: All right. So indications so far, Anderson, that not a large number of prisoners being taken, at least from the British information officers here at Doha. But they do have a general in custody as a POW and he may be able to shed some light on the situation in Basra.
COOPER: All right. Tom Mintier, thanks very much for the update. I appreciate it. Tom Mintier live from Doha, Qatar.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
