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CNN Sunday Morning
3 American Soldiers Killed, 2 Wounded in Iraq Today
Aired November 23, 2003 - 08:06 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.
ANDREA KOPPEL, CNN ANCHOR: Another violent day in Iraq. Three American soldiers killed and at least two wounded so far. Details now from CNN's Christiane Amanpour in Baghdad.
Christiane, it seemed for a bit there that there was a lull in the daily barrage of attacks. The military was attributing that to their campaign Iron Hammer. Is that still going on?
CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, no, not at all. In fact, not at all this weekend. And that lull, if there really was one, was very, very short lived.
Attacks have resumed not only against Iraqis who are helping the Americans, but also against Americans as well. And we've seen it today. Three Americans have been killed, according to military spokespeople.
One American was killed, according to them, when he was in a town not far from here, Baghdad, Baqubah, and the vehicle passed what has been known now as the improvised explosive devices, an explosive that's put on the road and then detonated by remote control when the vehicle passes. That killed one soldier and wounded two others.
Now, further north, in Mosul, which is about a three, three-and- a-half hour drive from here, two other U.S. soldiers were killed. Now, we're being told officially that there was gunfire and there was a traffic accident. The officials indicate that there may be other details forthcoming about this killing later perhaps in their official briefing. But there are pictures of the aftermath up in Mosul where one can see a Humvee, a U.S. military vehicle, and by the side sheets covering two bodies.
There has also been in the north more attacks against installations. For instance, at a social club that is part of an oil installation slightly north of Kirkuk in the north, four people, military civilian contractors were injured in that. And also overnight, we're told by Iraqi sources that one Iraqi colonel, a police colonel in charge of security for an oil installation up north was killed by an unidentified gunman.
So there is a surge of violence, there has been for a while. Yes, this American counterinsurgency continues. But it seems that the insurgents are still sort of squeezing through and managing to conduct attacks, hit and run and others, on the Americans.
Yesterday was a bloody day as well. Several people, more than a dozen Iraqis killed, Iraqis who were part of the American security formation and the newly trained police were killed by two suicide car bomb attacks. So this is right now again a very dangerous time -- Andrea.
KOPPEL: Any idea, Christiane, when the airport might reopen?
AMANPOUR: It's hard to tell. I mean, for certain things, it is open. What happened after yesterday, when for the first time a civilian airliner, a fixed-wing airliner was targeted and struck by a surface-to-air missile, its engine was on fire. Fortunately, it was able to make a safe emergency landing.
After that, the very few airlines that were using this airport, and most of them private shuttles, suspended flights until further notice. So we're going to wait and see how the developments proceed and whether those flights will resume. But in any event, the airport is not really open for full scale commercial traffic.
KOPPEL: All right. Christiane Amanpour there for us in Baghdad. Thank you, Christiane.
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 23, 2003 - 08:06 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ANDREA KOPPEL, CNN ANCHOR: Another violent day in Iraq. Three American soldiers killed and at least two wounded so far. Details now from CNN's Christiane Amanpour in Baghdad.
Christiane, it seemed for a bit there that there was a lull in the daily barrage of attacks. The military was attributing that to their campaign Iron Hammer. Is that still going on?
CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, no, not at all. In fact, not at all this weekend. And that lull, if there really was one, was very, very short lived.
Attacks have resumed not only against Iraqis who are helping the Americans, but also against Americans as well. And we've seen it today. Three Americans have been killed, according to military spokespeople.
One American was killed, according to them, when he was in a town not far from here, Baghdad, Baqubah, and the vehicle passed what has been known now as the improvised explosive devices, an explosive that's put on the road and then detonated by remote control when the vehicle passes. That killed one soldier and wounded two others.
Now, further north, in Mosul, which is about a three, three-and- a-half hour drive from here, two other U.S. soldiers were killed. Now, we're being told officially that there was gunfire and there was a traffic accident. The officials indicate that there may be other details forthcoming about this killing later perhaps in their official briefing. But there are pictures of the aftermath up in Mosul where one can see a Humvee, a U.S. military vehicle, and by the side sheets covering two bodies.
There has also been in the north more attacks against installations. For instance, at a social club that is part of an oil installation slightly north of Kirkuk in the north, four people, military civilian contractors were injured in that. And also overnight, we're told by Iraqi sources that one Iraqi colonel, a police colonel in charge of security for an oil installation up north was killed by an unidentified gunman.
So there is a surge of violence, there has been for a while. Yes, this American counterinsurgency continues. But it seems that the insurgents are still sort of squeezing through and managing to conduct attacks, hit and run and others, on the Americans.
Yesterday was a bloody day as well. Several people, more than a dozen Iraqis killed, Iraqis who were part of the American security formation and the newly trained police were killed by two suicide car bomb attacks. So this is right now again a very dangerous time -- Andrea.
KOPPEL: Any idea, Christiane, when the airport might reopen?
AMANPOUR: It's hard to tell. I mean, for certain things, it is open. What happened after yesterday, when for the first time a civilian airliner, a fixed-wing airliner was targeted and struck by a surface-to-air missile, its engine was on fire. Fortunately, it was able to make a safe emergency landing.
After that, the very few airlines that were using this airport, and most of them private shuttles, suspended flights until further notice. So we're going to wait and see how the developments proceed and whether those flights will resume. But in any event, the airport is not really open for full scale commercial traffic.
KOPPEL: All right. Christiane Amanpour there for us in Baghdad. Thank you, Christiane.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
