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CNN Sunday Morning
Rumsfeld Heads to Middle East
Aired April 27, 2003 - 10:05 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.
KELLI ARENA, CNN ANCHOR: The cards just keep falling. Coalition forces say they've taken into custody another playing card on Iraq's most wanted list. The U.S. comments as Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld heads to the region. More now from CNN's Patty Davis.
Hi, Patty.
PATTY DAVIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, hi, Kelli. He is the six of clubs, former Iraq -- former head of the National Directorate. His name, Lieutenant General Husam Mohammed Amin al-Yasin, was Iraq's liaison with the United Nations weapons inspectors before the war. And you'd often see him on television, very visible, saying Iraq did not have weapons of mass destruction. U.S. Central Command not getting any details of how he was taken into custody, did he surrender, was he captured, where did that take place. We do not know, hoping to learn more as the day goes along.
Now, the Lieutenant General Amin could be valuable to the U.S. on the weapons of mass destruction issue as well as the finding out where some of these other top Iraqi officials are. Now, his arrest makes now 13 of those cards the U.S. has now required. In that deck of 55, he's number 49 on the overall list.
Meanwhile, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld is in the Middle East. He is to thank U.S. troops over in Iraq when he goes there. He's also going to Afghanistan. In Iraq, thanking U.S. troops, also going to thank U.S. commanders for a job well done. But he is saying this is clearly not a victory tour as far as he is concerned. But he is also scheduled to meet with other leaders in the Persian Gulf region to talk about the future of the U.S. troops in the region and to thank them as well for all their cooperation during this war with Iraq -- Kelli.
ARENA: Patty, Amin's capture, getting back to that, is he understood to be part of Saddam Hussein's inner circle? We know that when Tariq Aziz was caught, everyone thought that that was a big deal, but we know that he was not part of that inner circle. Is Amin thought to have been part of that and maybe we'll know where some of the bodies are?
DAVIS: Well, I think he clearly is, because he's one of the few officials, the few former Iraqi officials who were able to go on television and talk about weapons of mass destruction. You didn't hear too many people going on the air doing that. So Saddam Hussein clearly trusting him. He was also the one who was leading the weapons inspectors around and -- served as a liaison with them. So if indeed Iraq had anything to hide, those secrets were guarded with Amin. So, clearly, a big catcher, Kelli.
ARENA: Thanks very much, Patty.
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 April 27, 2003 - 10:05 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KELLI ARENA, CNN ANCHOR: The cards just keep falling. Coalition forces say they've taken into custody another playing card on Iraq's most wanted list. The U.S. comments as Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld heads to the region. More now from CNN's Patty Davis.
Hi, Patty.
PATTY DAVIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, hi, Kelli. He is the six of clubs, former Iraq -- former head of the National Directorate. His name, Lieutenant General Husam Mohammed Amin al-Yasin, was Iraq's liaison with the United Nations weapons inspectors before the war. And you'd often see him on television, very visible, saying Iraq did not have weapons of mass destruction. U.S. Central Command not getting any details of how he was taken into custody, did he surrender, was he captured, where did that take place. We do not know, hoping to learn more as the day goes along.
Now, the Lieutenant General Amin could be valuable to the U.S. on the weapons of mass destruction issue as well as the finding out where some of these other top Iraqi officials are. Now, his arrest makes now 13 of those cards the U.S. has now required. In that deck of 55, he's number 49 on the overall list.
Meanwhile, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld is in the Middle East. He is to thank U.S. troops over in Iraq when he goes there. He's also going to Afghanistan. In Iraq, thanking U.S. troops, also going to thank U.S. commanders for a job well done. But he is saying this is clearly not a victory tour as far as he is concerned. But he is also scheduled to meet with other leaders in the Persian Gulf region to talk about the future of the U.S. troops in the region and to thank them as well for all their cooperation during this war with Iraq -- Kelli.
ARENA: Patty, Amin's capture, getting back to that, is he understood to be part of Saddam Hussein's inner circle? We know that when Tariq Aziz was caught, everyone thought that that was a big deal, but we know that he was not part of that inner circle. Is Amin thought to have been part of that and maybe we'll know where some of the bodies are?
DAVIS: Well, I think he clearly is, because he's one of the few officials, the few former Iraqi officials who were able to go on television and talk about weapons of mass destruction. You didn't hear too many people going on the air doing that. So Saddam Hussein clearly trusting him. He was also the one who was leading the weapons inspectors around and -- served as a liaison with them. So if indeed Iraq had anything to hide, those secrets were guarded with Amin. So, clearly, a big catcher, Kelli.
ARENA: Thanks very much, Patty.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
