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CNN Saturday Morning News

Another Top Iraqi Official Captured

Aired April 19, 2003 - 06:07   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: Let's move on to the new Iraq, let's take the latest developments from Iraq.
A lot going on in Iraq today. Yet another top Iraqi official has been captured. That's the third in recent days.

Rula Amin joins us now from Baghdad with the latest -- Rula?

RULA AMIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Anderson, Hikmat Al Azzawi was Saddam Hussein's deputy prime minister. And he was his finance minister He was arrested by Iraqi police. He was staying at the house that belonged to one of his relatives. And the Iraqi police were able to find him because one Iraqi tipped him on where he is staying.

He did not resist his -- when he was arrested. He actually told the Iraqi police that he was actually thinking about surrendering himself to the Marines. The Iraqi police took him and turned him over to the U.S. Marines, who are investigating whatever information he knows. And he may be willing to give.

Now Hikmat Al Azzawi is the fifth person that is arrested among 55 Iraqi officials that are on the U.S. most wanted list. And those same Iraqi police that arrested Hikmat Azzawi today are also on the streets of Baghdad, patrolling the streets, trying to restore some order and security back to the Iraqi residents there.

Today for the first time, we saw them with guns. In the beginning, they were not armed and they were only patrolling the streets in joint patrols with the Marines. Today, we see more Iraqi police operating on their own and now with guns.

This is very interesting because these are the same policemen who used to work under the government of Saddam Hussein. The people in the beginning welcomed their return to the streets because the chaos that overwhelmed the streets had made them forget the fact that they are Saddam Hussein's same policemen. However, we did see some people coming here to the hotel and protesting to the Marines that these people have worked for Saddam Hussein and they do not want to see them -- Anderson?

COOPER: Yes, it's one of those Catch 22s. I mean, people want security, and yet, how do you get security by using the old police force, who many they say are corrupt? Is there any talk about trying to retrain the police force in other countries, where there has been this kind of regime change? In Haiti, for instance, a lot of effort has been made into trying to retrain the police force, bring them up to speed to more modern methods?

AMIN: Well, actually, we're not hearing about training. We're hearing about injecting the police force here with new blood, maybe people who have been in exile, maybe different Iraqis, Iraqis from Baghdad who have not been in the police force yet, but they are qualified to be so.

Those police -- as former Iraqi policemen, have not been involved in the security operations of the latest government. They were more traffic police. They had very little salaries. They were, actually, willing to be bribed, because they had so much, so little money. They made such little money that people knew that they were not making a lot of money and they were able to bribe them.

But there, still, they were afraid. They were part of the regime. And sometimes they benefit because they were being -- they are -- they have been bribed. And some people who have been very desperate were -- wanted to be part of the police force in order to have that opportunity to be bribed as an extra income -- Anderson?

COOPER: Well, they were part of the regime. Were they a repressive arm of the regime? I mean, I know they're just traffic police, but did they play a greater role that -- than their title might indicate?

AMIN: Not in a very literal way, no, not really. They were more traffic police keeping robbers off the streets. And Iraqis here did feel safe. Many of them told us that they welcomed the return of these specific security people, but not the other security organizations. This is something -- whenever we ask people if they welcome the return of the former policemen on the streets of Baghdad, they would tell us those people yes, but not any of the security -- other security organizations -- Anderson?

COOPER: All right, Rula Amin in Baghdad, thanks very much.

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 19, 2003 - 06:07   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: Let's move on to the new Iraq, let's take the latest developments from Iraq.
A lot going on in Iraq today. Yet another top Iraqi official has been captured. That's the third in recent days.

Rula Amin joins us now from Baghdad with the latest -- Rula?

RULA AMIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Anderson, Hikmat Al Azzawi was Saddam Hussein's deputy prime minister. And he was his finance minister He was arrested by Iraqi police. He was staying at the house that belonged to one of his relatives. And the Iraqi police were able to find him because one Iraqi tipped him on where he is staying.

He did not resist his -- when he was arrested. He actually told the Iraqi police that he was actually thinking about surrendering himself to the Marines. The Iraqi police took him and turned him over to the U.S. Marines, who are investigating whatever information he knows. And he may be willing to give.

Now Hikmat Al Azzawi is the fifth person that is arrested among 55 Iraqi officials that are on the U.S. most wanted list. And those same Iraqi police that arrested Hikmat Azzawi today are also on the streets of Baghdad, patrolling the streets, trying to restore some order and security back to the Iraqi residents there.

Today for the first time, we saw them with guns. In the beginning, they were not armed and they were only patrolling the streets in joint patrols with the Marines. Today, we see more Iraqi police operating on their own and now with guns.

This is very interesting because these are the same policemen who used to work under the government of Saddam Hussein. The people in the beginning welcomed their return to the streets because the chaos that overwhelmed the streets had made them forget the fact that they are Saddam Hussein's same policemen. However, we did see some people coming here to the hotel and protesting to the Marines that these people have worked for Saddam Hussein and they do not want to see them -- Anderson?

COOPER: Yes, it's one of those Catch 22s. I mean, people want security, and yet, how do you get security by using the old police force, who many they say are corrupt? Is there any talk about trying to retrain the police force in other countries, where there has been this kind of regime change? In Haiti, for instance, a lot of effort has been made into trying to retrain the police force, bring them up to speed to more modern methods?

AMIN: Well, actually, we're not hearing about training. We're hearing about injecting the police force here with new blood, maybe people who have been in exile, maybe different Iraqis, Iraqis from Baghdad who have not been in the police force yet, but they are qualified to be so.

Those police -- as former Iraqi policemen, have not been involved in the security operations of the latest government. They were more traffic police. They had very little salaries. They were, actually, willing to be bribed, because they had so much, so little money. They made such little money that people knew that they were not making a lot of money and they were able to bribe them.

But there, still, they were afraid. They were part of the regime. And sometimes they benefit because they were being -- they are -- they have been bribed. And some people who have been very desperate were -- wanted to be part of the police force in order to have that opportunity to be bribed as an extra income -- Anderson?

COOPER: Well, they were part of the regime. Were they a repressive arm of the regime? I mean, I know they're just traffic police, but did they play a greater role that -- than their title might indicate?

AMIN: Not in a very literal way, no, not really. They were more traffic police keeping robbers off the streets. And Iraqis here did feel safe. Many of them told us that they welcomed the return of these specific security people, but not the other security organizations. This is something -- whenever we ask people if they welcome the return of the former policemen on the streets of Baghdad, they would tell us those people yes, but not any of the security -- other security organizations -- Anderson?

COOPER: All right, Rula Amin in Baghdad, thanks very much.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com