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CNN Wolf Blitzer Reports
Iraq Brands Bush 'Loser,' 'War Criminal'
Aired March 18, 2003 - 17:00 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.
WOLF BLITZER, HOST: We're almost midway through President Bush's 48-hour ultimatum to Saddam Hussein.
Today, formal rejection from Baghdad, where elite Republican Guard units are now in their own final preparations for a war.
We're live in Kuwait City. The top concern here: will Iraq launch its own preemptive strike in the coming hours. Indeed, everyone in this part of the world is bracing for the worst, even as Homeland Security officials back in the United States are bracing for terrorist strikes.
We're watching all these developments.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANNOUNCER: Now, a special edition of WOLF BLITZER REPORTS, SHOWDOWN: IRAQ. On the brink of war.
BLITZER (voice-over): Ultimatum rejected.
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The tyrant will soon be gone.
BLITZER: But not voluntarily. Saddam Hussein in battle dress gives his answer.
President Bush behind closed doors with the war planners. How far away is that grim Oval Office announcement?
U.N. inspectors move out of Iraq. As U.S. and British forces move toward the border, the deadly agents that may be on the other side. We're on the scene with the troops and throughout a very uneasy neighborhood.
Unease at home, code orange.
TOM RIDGE, HOMELAND SECURITY SECRETARY: We should prepare for potential attacks, either here or abroad at this time.
BLITZER: And waiting for the bombs to drop. I'll speak with Bernard Shaw, a CNN veteran from the first Gulf War.
ANNOUNCER: WOLF BLITZER REPORTS, live from the Persian Gulf, in Kuwait, starts right now.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER: It's just after 1 a.m. here in Kuwait City. Iraqi President Saddam Hussein has 27 hours before President Bush's ultimatum expires. Hello from the Persian Gulf. I'm Wolf Blitzer reporting tonight live from Kuwait City.
Here's a look at the top stories we're tracking this hour in the showdown with Iraq.
Baghdad has officially rejected the demand that Saddam Hussein go into exile. His foreign minister said U.S. and British leaders are the ones who should leave office, calling President Bush and I'm quoting here, "idiot man."
The U.S. military says the Iraqi Republican Guard units may now have munitions filled with a deadly nerve agent and with mustard gas. U.S. military broadcasts are urging Iraqi troops to leave their weapons and vehicles in the field and return to their barracks.
Duct tape and plastic sheeting: Israelis were told today to start sealing rooms in their homes against possible chemical or biological attacks from Iraq. Iraq fired 39 SCUDs at Israel in the first Persian Gulf War, but used no germs or poison gas.
Code orange: with the U.S. back on high alert, top intelligence officials say it's a virtual certainty that terrorists will try to launch multiple attacks coinciding with a war in Iraq. Small scale strikes by al Qaeda are considered likely, but officials aren't sure if al Qaeda can still carry out more spectacular attacks.
And this late development, the federal government has imposed new flight restrictions on airspace over Disneyland and Disney world and the New York City area, as well as the nation's capitol.
Here in Kuwait City, residents are under no illusions. Some have left the country. They're worried that Saddam Hussein could order a chemical or biological attack in the opening hours of war. Gas masks have been made available.
Still many Kuwaitis say they're counting on the United States to protect them. More on the tensions here later, but first the decisions that impact the troops abroad and your safety at home.
We'll go live to the Pentagon, to New York and to Carroll, but we begin with our senior White House correspondent, John King -- John.
JOHN KING, CNN SR. WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, as you noted, that deadline to Saddam Hussein now just 27 hours away and senior administration officials say President Bush reserves the right to act to strike almost immediately after it lapses.
Yet two senior administration officials telling CNN today that the president might choose to wait a bit. Echoing the words of the president last night, these two officials said America will strike at a time of its choosing.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
(voice-over) It was 34 hours and counting when the Pentagon brass arrived to brief the president on the war plans, near the 33-hour mark when they emerged knowing Iraq already had rejected the U.S. ultimatum.
ARI FLEISCHER, WHITE HOUSE SPOKESMAN: Saddam Hussein, if he doesn't leave the country, will make his final mistake.
KING: Senior U.S. officials say the president and vice president were told the troops are ready and these officials say an order to attack could come as early as Wednesday.
Only Great Britain and perhaps Australia are slated to directly join the fight. But the administration listed 30 countries it says are part of the U.S.-led coalition from Italy, Iceland, Spain and South Korea to the Czech Republic, Nicaragua, tiny Albania and the impoverished east African nation of Eritrea.
Mr. President called presidents Putin of Russia and Hu of China, voicing hope long-term relations would not suffer despite profound disagreements over war in Iraq.
White House anger at France and Germany runs deeper, even more so after fresh criticism of Mr. Bush's march to war.
JACQUES CHIRAC, FRENCH PRESIDENT (through translator: There's no justification for this unilateral resort to war.
GERHARD SHROEDER, GERMAN CHANCELLOR (through translator): There is no reason to end this disarmament process now.
KING: Dissent at home, as well. Leading Democrats accused the president of botching diplomacy and say his domestic agenda is at odds with the country's war time footing.
SEN. EDWARD KENNEDY (D), MASSACHUSETTS: We should not have a tax cut until we are going to pay for the war in Iraq, pay for the occupation in Iraq and also pay for the return of the troops.
KING: The treasury and commerce secretaries are telling the president the economic impact of war should not be all that severe. And the White House hopes a short conflict will boost not only financial markets but also Mr. Bush's clout on Capitol Hill.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
Now even if Saddam Hussein suddenly decides to go into exile, the White House says U.S. troops would still enter Iraq to destroy its weapons and secure its borders, but no one here expects the Iraqi leader to go peacefully.
Plans already in the works for an Oval Office address announcing the beginning of hostilities. Some say it could come as early as Wednesday, some expect the president to wait just a little bit -- Wolf. BLITZER: John King at the White House. John, thanks very much.
And reaction to President Bush's ultimatum ranges from praise to acceptance to anger. Here's a sampling of world opinion.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
(voice-over) French President Jacques Chirac remains opposed to attacking Iraq, but with war increasingly likely France says it might offer assistance under certain circumstances.
JEAN-DAVID LEVITTE, FRENCH AMBASSADOR TO U.S.: If the war starts and if Saddam Hussein uses chemical or biological weapons, it would change completely the situation.
BLITZER: Despite deep controversy inside his own political party, British Prime Minister Tony Blair supported President Bush in his speech to Parliament.
TONY BLAIR, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: Back away from this confrontation now and future conflicts will be infinitely worse and more devastating in their effects.
BLITZER: Even though Spanish prime minister Jose Maria Aznar has been a strong supporter of the U.S. stance against Iraq, Spain will not join in any attack. Ending weeks of speculation, Mr. Aznar says there will be no Spanish combat troops involved.
Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi backed President Bush's decision to issue an ultimatum, calling the move unavoidable. He offered Japanese support for Iraq's post-war reconstruction.
One hundred anti-war demonstrators marched on the U.S. embassy in the Philippines. Police used clubs to beat them back and at least 11 people were hurt.
South Korea worries that a war in Iraq would increase tension on the Korean Peninsula. At a South Korean cabinet meeting, ministers were warned to be on alert for possible provocation from the north, timed to coincide with hostilities in the Persian Gulf.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
And with just over one day left until the U.S.-mandated deadline, neither Saddam Hussein nor his sons show any sign they'll leave Iraq.
CNN's senior international correspondent, Nic Robertson, is in Baghdad.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is the image Iraq wants the world to see, defiance on the eve of war, a hastily-organized government demonstration showing support for President Saddam Hussein.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We came here to say to Bush all Iraqi people want peace and they are against war.
ROBERTSON: Gun-toting civilians imply defense of every household should U.S. troops arrive.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): Let him try his bad luck here. We are ready for them. Ready with sticks, anything.
ROBERTSON: Pictures of the same demo were carried on Iraqi television, implying for anyone here who may doubt it, President Saddam Hussein is firmly in control.
Meeting top politicians earlier in the day, the Iraqi leader was seen in his military uniform for the first time in two years. He denounced President Bush's ultimatum as debased and flawed.
Indeed, his elder son, Uday Saddam Hussein, in a statement on his own television station, said it was President Bush who should leave office.
The defiant language echoed at a news conference by Iraq's foreign minister, who called President Bush an idiot and said Iraq has done all it can to avoid war.
NAJI SABRI, IRAQI FOREIGN MINISTER: The radical, I think, solution to key this window open is for the two despots in Washington to leave office. Once they leave office they can open the window for diplomacy all around the world to solve all the disputes away from the cowboy policy.
ROBERTSON: Sabri also described the Iraqi leader as sure of victory.
SABRI: He is relaxed. He is good, and he is sure of beating this evil aggression against Iraq.
ROBERTSON (on camera): While there is acceptance here among Iraq's leaders that war is a certainty, there is some satisfaction that the United States and Great Britain do not have strong U.N. backing to conduct it.
Nic Robertson, CNN, Baghdad.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER: Meanwhile, U.S.-led coalition forces are on the move. These British troops were heading north through the Kuwaiti Desert toward the Iraqi border earlier today. Witnesses report seeing hundreds of military vehicles on a highway heading in the same direction.
Have Saddam Hussein's best troops been armed with deadly chemical munitions? Can the United States persuade the Iraqi military to lay its weapons down?
Let's go live to our senior Pentagon correspondent Jamie McIntyre who has a breaking news development right now -- Jamie. JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN SR. PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, this just in to CNN. According to sources here at Pentagon, this operation against Iraq now has a name. It's going to be called "Operation Iraqi Freedom." At least that's the name they've settled on, although officials caution, until it's officially announced by Defense Secretary Rumsfeld or perhaps President Bush it won't be final.
According to sources this name was picked over Operation Desert Freedom because it was felt it more accurately described the objective of the military mission.
Right now the objective is a psychological campaign, aimed at trying to get the Iraqi to surrender before a shots is fired. The Pentagon says it's not just wishful thinking.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
(voice-over): Between now and when the war begins the Iraqi military will be showered with U.S. propaganda, aimed at convincing Iraqi troops to keep their guns pointed down and to give up without a fight.
BUSH: If war comes do not fight for a dying regime that is not worth your own life.
MCINTYRE: President Bush's message is being broadcast in Arabic into Iraq by a U.S. military airborne radio station. Sources say the clear instructions to avoid attack promised by President Bush tell the Iraqi military to lay down their weapons, park their tanks or other military vehicles and remain in their barracks until U.S. forces arrive.
If the Iraqi troops Don't resist and technically Don't surrender, that could reduce the number of POWs the U.S. military is responsible for. And in turn, that can allow ground troops to leapfrog over Iraqi regular forces in the south and more quickly move against the Republican Guard, which has dispersed around Baghdad and Saddam Hussein's ancestral home of Tikrit.
In addition, sources say, U.S. and British troops in Kuwait are hoping to score a quick victory in the southern poor town of Basra, which has a Shiite population that tends not to support Saddam Hussein.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
The theory there is that if the U.S. were to get some pictures of jubilant Iraqis in Basra, that could have a demoralizing effect that could cause other Iraqi military units to fold.
The big question now, will the Republican Guard fight? Will they use chemical weapons? Some evidence that some Republican Guard units may have artillery shells filled with poison gas. Another indicator that they might use chemical weapons: the commander who's been put in charge of forces in the south is connected to the use of chemical weapons against the Kurds in 1998 -- Wolf. BLITZER: Jamie McIntyre with the latest information at the Pentagon. Jamie, thanks very much.
And let's take a further look at these late developments. We want to talk more about the first wave of the looming war could, which could come, as we say, almost at any time.
It would begin with an aerial assault. That would include, of course, U.S. bombers, jets, AWACs, refueling planes. Joining us now for a closer look at what the primary targets would be in the first 24 hours is our military analyst, retired U.S. Air Force Major General Don Shepperd.
General Shepperd, thanks so much for joining us. What would be the primary targets during the first 24 hours?
MAJ. GEN. DON SHEPPERD, U.S. AIR FORCE (RET.): Well, my pleasure, Wolf.
And the primary targets are going to be the air defense network, command and control sites, suspected weapons of mass destruction and leadership sites.
We have a small animation clip here that might be of interest to the viewers, showing what the air defenses are going to be like. This is SA-2 missiles from the Vietnam era but much improved. They're going to be ringing Baghdad with what they have called a hornet's nest.
This is a radar site. The radars find the airplanes, lock the missiles onto them. Those radars are jammed by EA-6B jamming aircraft that screw up the scopes of the SAM, surface-to-air missile, operators inside, giving them multiple targets to work against the guidance radars. The airplanes then go in to hit the -- not only the radar, but also the missile sites.
And they will also use homing anti-radiation missiles filed by air force and naval aircraft and those aircraft defend themselves with chap and flare to further confuse the radar and protect themselves against shoulder-fired missiles and the missiles themselves home on the radar.
And it's going to be a tough air battle early on here, Wolf. A lot of it depends upon stealth and hitting those targets early, taking down the air defenses so we can do the other work from a military standpoint.
BLITZER: General Shepard, I know there's great concern about casualties, Iraqi civilian casualties, especially. What is the U.S. military doing to try to prevent those kinds of casualties, what they call collateral damage?
SHEPPERD: There will be civilian casualties, Wolf, and it depends upon where Saddam puts his defenses and important targets in relation to civilian targets that will cause collateral damage. What the U.S. military does is it works all of these targets backwards through a computer to see what the collateral damage will likely be and predicts. Then it goes to see if it needs to change the type of weapon, the fusing of the weapon, the timing of the strike, of the depth of the fusing, if you will, and also maybe come in from a different angle.
All of these are carefully analyzed, and no matter how carefully you analyze it, there still will be civilian casualties. But most of it depends upon where Saddam locates his military in relation to those civilian targets, Wolf.
BLITZER: Will there, General Shepperd, be a simultaneous effort to get Saddam Hussein and his sons, either capture or kill them?
SHEPPERD: I think so, but not in the way that you are asking from the standpoint of assassination. These are leadership targets we will be going after. Anytime there's a collection of leadership, the U.S. military and the coalition forces will go after that leadership target where they are located, where they are communicating from. And if Saddam and his sons happen to be there, it's bad luck for them.
As far as capturing them, if we get intelligence information, the military will go in probably with special forces, delta teams, that type of thing, if they think they can do it safely with suitable risks for the United States and coalition forces, Wolf.
BLITZER: Our military analyst, General Don Shepard. General Shepard, thanks very much.
And here's your chance to weigh in on the showdown with Iraq. Our Web question of the day is this, "Will an attack on Iraq make the U.S. more safe or less safe in the long run?" We'll have the results later in the broadcast. Please vote at CNN.com/Wolf.
From New York to the golden state, Americans on high alert. We'll go coast to coast to see how cities are beefing up security.
Plus, a massive show of force in the desert. U.S. troops get ready to move on Baghdad.
And will the first victim of this war be truth? A closer look at the propaganda battles. CNN's former anchor, Bernard Shaw will join me live.
You're watching CNN, the most trusted name in news.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: New words of warning, the terror threats America faces once an attack on Iraq begins. That's coming up. We're live here in the Persian Gulf and we're back in one moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: You're looking at a live picture of the British parliament, where Prime Minister Tony Blair's government has just survived a vote, a vote 396-217, a vote in favor of his policies as far as Iraq is concerned, 396 to 217. A vote in the British parliament just moments ago in favor of Tony Blair's stance alongside the Bush administration.
As the United States inches closer to a war with Iraq, there's concern that terrorists will retaliate with attacks on U.S. soil. After President Bush's speech last night, the terror threat level was raised to the level orange or high.
And today the State Department's top counter-terrorism official says there's a center they terrorists will try to launch multiple attacks against U.S. targets once a war starts. CNN's Jeanne Meserve has more on the increased threat and U.S. efforts to protect the homeland.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEANNE MESERVE, CNN HOMELAND SECURITY CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Level orange was evident. Even in places where there had been a lot of security, there was more.
CHIEF JOHN TIMONEY, MIAMI POLICE: This city and other cities across America have really goosed it up, if you will.
MESERVE: The looming likelihood of hostilities with Iraq and intelligence assessments that retaliatory attacks are a near certainty prompted the change.
RIDGE: While al Qaeda and those sympathetic to their cause are still a principle threat, the principle threat: Iraqi state agents, Iraqi surrogate groups, other regional extremist organizations and ad hoc groups or disgruntled individuals may use this time period to conduct terrorist attacks against the United States and our interests, either here or abroad.
MESERVE: Under Operation Liberty Shield, as the new national security plan is called, patrols on waterways and ports are being stepped up with security zones around critical infrastructure.
Law enforcement is more visible at airports and new flight restrictions are being put in place in certain U.S. cities, plus Disney World in Orlando and Disneyland in Anaheim.
The plan also calls for increased security at chemical facilities and increased vigilance in food production, just as the general accounting office released reports saying the extent of security precautions in food processing is unclear and the vulnerability of chemical plants unassessed and largely unaddressed.
Meanwhile, on the national mall, a standoff continued with a man who claims his tractor is loaded with explosives. It snarled traffic, shuddered buildings and diverted security assets and attention.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: One cop became three cops and three cops was, like, this whole situation. MESERVE: While it doesn't appear to be a terrorist act, that has it happened at all raises the question, is security even in the nation's capitol what it could or should be?
Jeanne Meserve, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER: The heightened terror alert has cities nationwide quickly moving to increase security. We have reporters covering that part of the story on both coasts.
Rusty Dornin is in San Francisco, but we begin with Jason Carroll in New York where the mayor has briefed reporters -- Jason.
JASON CARROLL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And Wolf, New York City's mayor, Michael Bloomberg, is calling it the most comprehensive terrorism prevention plan the city has ever seen.
It is called "Operation Atlas," and it will go into full effect once war gets underway. It involves several hundred officers within the New York City Police Department. Their job would be to provide extra support, extra surveillance of key sites throughout the city, sites such as bridges, tunnels, the city's subways. Some of these officers, we're now being told, will be equipped with air monitoring devices to check for chemical or biological agents.
The police commissioner also saying today during a press conference, his department is, quote, "tightening the protective net around the city." That will include add patrols at government buildings, the financial district downtown, houses of worship; in addition to that also tourist attractions.
Mayor Bloomberg saying that history has shown that events halfway around the world can very easily disrupt the city here. With "Operation Atlas," he wants to make sure that never happens again -- Wolf.
BLITZER: Jason Carroll in New York.
Meanwhile, California's governor is ordering security in that state increased. CNN's Rusty Dornin is in San Francisco, home of several high profile, potential terrorist attacks -- Rusty.
RUSTY DORNIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, you know, Wolf, it's easy on a day like today to see why the Golden Gate Bridge is considered a national treasure and also why it's high on the list of potential terrorist targets.
Now the Golden Gate Bridge has been on heightened alert since September 11, but when the nation goes into an orange alert there are a few more precautions that kick into place.
One of them is to close this access road which leads underneath the bridge support to Fort Point. There's also another road that leads under the bridge on the other side in Marin County; that is also closed to hikers, joggers and all traffic.
The highway patrol also has inspections and random truck inspections on the road that leads to access to the bridge.
Now the national guard has been here since September 11, ordered here by Governor Davis. Now you have not been seeing those patrols. You don't see them up at street level, but you have seen them over the last few days. You'll see the soldiers or -- excuse me, the troops patrolling in areas near the street surface parts of the bridge.
There are also added air patrols by the California Highway Patrol and the Coast Guard. The governor has also ordered the highway patrol to do surveillance of waterways, electrical grids and other areas during the heightened alert status.
Now, it looks like there will be a lot of disappointed joggers and folks here that won't be able to get near the bottom of the bridge, but we do understand from the Golden Gate Bridge folks that even during a red alert that the bridge will not be closed to traffic or to foot traffic -- Wolf.
BLITZER: Rusty Dornin in San Francisco. Rusty, thanks very much.
Meanwhile Iraq's neighbors are also very much on high alert. Israelis are bracing for possible attacks like the first Gulf War, but this time they're vowing revenge. The latest from Tel Aviv and around the region. That's coming up.
Also, on the brink of war, we'll take you across the Kuwaiti Desert, where U.S. troops are getting ready for the fight of their lives. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: In Iraq and its neighboring countries, the threat of war within hours has nerves, obviously, very much on edge. We have reporters stationed across the region and we begin with the latest on the situation in northern Iraq.
BEN WEDEMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Ben Wedeman in Erbil, northern Iraq. Here the Kurds are bracing for war, many of them moving away as far as possible from the front line.
Now what they're worried about is the possibility that Saddam Hussein will unleash chemical weapons upon them as he did in the late 1980s.
Now the actual state of the Iraqi army in the north doesn't seem to be very good. We have seen them digging deeper trenches, some new weapons on the front lines. But according to villagers who have been watching them for years, those soldiers are in very poor state, a very poor state, morale is low and getting dramatically lower now that it looks like the United States will attack Iraq in the coming hours.
RULA AMIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Rula Amin in Jordan. Here preparations to cope with any war in Iraq have been crippled today by strong wind and a sand storm. Workers who were trying to set up two refugee camps in the desert next to the Iraqi borders have not been able to put up the tent yet. This is something that increases to get these camps ready to receive from about 20-30,000 Iraqi refugees, if they are able to cross the border into Jordan.
western embassies in the capital Amman, including the U.S. Embassy, concerned there may be a threat to westerners as a result of anger in the streets and frustration there. is strong opposition here to any war in Iraq. People are not buying the justification for a war and the government is sending the message to Jordanians that the relationship and the alliance with the United States should not be undermined by differences with the U.S. over Iraq.
Rula Amin, CNN, Ruwashied, Jordan.
HARRIS WHITBECK CNN CORRESPONDENT: The Turkish government is putting the final touches on a resolution that would be presented to the parliament as early as tomorrow. If authorized that motion would allow the United States to use Turkish territory and airspace to launch a Northern front against Iraq. The U.S. military has been preparing the ground here for several weeks now under a previous memorandum of understanding between Turkey and United States. Military equipment, support and logistics equipment has been flowing through several ports in Southern Turkey and headed towards about nine sites, very close to the border between Turkey and Iraq.
Those sites would be prepared to host troops who would go from there into Northern Iraq. The big question is in terms of airspace is what Turkish bases might be used to launch airstrikes against Iraq. In 1991 Incirlik Air Base where we are was used to launch 4,000 air sorties into Iraq, about 3,000 tons of ordinance were dropped on Iraq at that time. People on the base here said they would expect, because of the strategic location of this base, that that would happen this time around.
Harris Whitbeck, CNN, reporting from Incirlik Air Base in southern Turkey.
KELLY WALLACE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Kelly Wallace in Tel Aviv where there continues to be a general sense of calm in the country. Repeated statement by Israeli officials that they believe there is a low probability of a successful Iraqi attack has reduced general anxiety levels in the country. Still the government today instructed citizens to go ahead and prepared a sealed off room also known as a safe room in the events of a chemical or biological attack. So you can find many Israeli families today using duct tape and plastic to go ahead and prepare such a room in their home.
Meantime the Israeli Air Force remains on high alert. Helicopter pilots who would lift off the minute an Iraqi Scud is launched to go ahead and track the missile and direct emergency crews to the area that it hit say they have finalized all their drills. Now they say they are waiting to see if war will come to them. Israeli military officials say they believe the first 48 hours of a U.S.-led attack on Iraq will be most critical when it comes to Israel's security. This is because they believe this is the amount of time it would take U.S. forces to gain control of Western Iraq, the area in Iraq where Saddam Hussein's missiles are believed to be within range of Israel. Back to you.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER: Thanks very much, Kelly Wallace and all of our reporters in the region.
This just in from the British Parliament. A second vote this, one in support of the British Prime Minister Tony Blair and his policy on Iraq has easily passed the British Parliament, 412 in support of Tony Blair's policies, 149 opposed. Tony Blair, winning two important votes in the past several minutes in the House of Commons in London.
Much more coverage coming up including the clock, that clock that is ticking closer to war. A little less than 27 hours before time runs out for Saddam Hussein, but he's digging in and he's digging in very firmly. We're keeping an eye on all of these late-breaking developments.
Plus, firepower in the desert. See how the U.S. Army and the Marine Corps are gearing up for battle.
And journalists staying behind in Baghdad. At what point does it become too dangerous? I'll ask Bernard Shaw who reported live from Baghdad during the first Gulf War.
You're watching CNN, the most trusted name in news.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: On the brink of war here are some of the top stories we're following in the showdown with Iraq right now. No exile. Iraq has rejected the U.S. demand that Saddam Hussein leave the country. The Foreign Minister Naji Sabri (UNINTELLIGIBLE) says it's President Bush who should go into exile and he accuses the United States of trying to colonize the Middle East.
Final preparations, President Bush huddled at the White House with his top national security team. Officials say the president was told the troops are ready for war, adding an attack order could come as soon as tomorrow.
About face: The French President Jacques Chirac says there's still no justification for a unilateral resort to war, but his ambassador to Washington said France may join the battle if, if, Iraq resorts to chemical or biological weapons.
Code orange. With the nation once again at a high alert level, U.S. intelligence officials expect terrorists to attempt multiple attacks linked to a war in Iraq. They say it's a near center they al Qaeda will launch at least small-scale strikes still within its capability.
For U.S.-led forces massed in the Persian Gulf area.
For U.S.-led forces massed in the Persian Gulf area the long way may almost be over.
We have three reports starting with CNN senior international correspondent Walter Rodgers in Northern Kuwait.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WALTER RODGERS, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: I'm Walter Rodgers, CNN, with the U.S. Army 7th Cavalry in the Northern Kuwaiti desert. This unit's tanks and Bradley armored fighting vehicles are all fueled up. Earlier in the day there was an inspection here. Every one of the tanks and Bradley fighting vehicles was seemed to have seven days rations, seven days water, seven days worth of food and an addition seven days work of ammunition.
Some of the Bradley fighting vehicles were so packed with ammunition you could barely climb in or out of them. At one point the tanks were inspected much the way you would drive your car into a filling station. They put the dip stick into the oil to make sure the oil levels were fine. They took the battery caps off to make sure that there was water in the batteries. Now these soldiers are bedded down for the night knowing that at any hour of the night they could be called to move forward because the 48-hour deadline that President Bush gave the Iraqis is clicking down very, very quickly and the men of the 7th Cavalry are more than ready to answer the call to charge.
JASON BELLINI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Jason Bellini with the 15th Marine Expeditionary unit in Kuwait. Well, today felt like pretty typical day, over the last five that we've been embedded here. But it certainly felt different beginning this morning as Marines were talking about the President Bush's speech, none of them got to see it, there aren't any TVs here, few people have radios, but they heard what the president has had to say.
Now instead of the speculation, the rumors that we've been hearing, Marines are talking about hostilities being just days, maybe hours away. One indication some Marines pointed out to me tonight that was we got a hot meal, a very good hot meal, the best one since we've been here. Normally we're eating three MREs a day. They said, hmm, that's little bit suspicious. We're finally getting a really good meal, maybe that's an indication, an indication that war is coming soon and that we'll be leaving this camp where they've been for the last month. Camp Bullrush here in Kuwait.
RYAN CHILCOTE CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Ryan Chilcote at Camp New Jersey with the 101st Airborne. Most of the soldiers didn't hear or see the president's address, at 4:00 this morning Camp New Jersey was pretty isolated. The (UNINTELLIGIBLE) tent home to the one TV that all soldiers have access to was closed and the Internet was down. Still, word got out pretty quickly that President Bush had given President Saddam Hussein and his two sons just 48 hours to get out of Iraq. The soldiers took that as their first firm cue that they might be shipping out soon. (voice-over): The artillery men had the run of the ranges today bringing out their 105 howitzers in their first and maybe their last live fire training exercise.
(on camera): Lastly, the Screaming Eagles hit the camp store en masse today, figuring they might not have too much more time to shop.
Back to you.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER: Thanks to all of our reporters on the front line.
Britain has some 40,000 military personnel here in the Gulf region including a large naval task force and an armored brigade with some 120 tanks. The Royal Air Force has deployed dozens of fighter jets, bombers, helicopter and other critical aircraft.
Joining me here in Kuwait City is the Royal Air Force spokesman in Kuwait, Group Captain Jon Fynes. Captain, thanks very much for joining us.
How concerned are you and your troops about the possibility of the Iraqis in the short term, the hours ahead launching some sort of biological or chemical attack?
GROUP CAPTAIN JON FYNES, ROYAL AIR FORCE: We obviously take the threat very seriously, but we've got extremely good care and we do practice a lot. So, you know, we're confident we can deal with any attack that should it come.
BLITZER: Have you come up with evidence that that's about to happen? Have you seen indications the Iraqi military might be planning such a step?
FYNES: Nothing that I'm aware of, but we do know that he's got these weapons of mass destruction. That's why we are here.
BLITZER: What is specifically, the most important things that British contingent, a robust 40,000 troops is providing this operation?
FYNES: From the Royal Air Force perspective, we are bringing 100 airplanes. In particular, we are bringing some that the United States will be very short of.
We've got a large tanker force. We've got quite a lot of reconnaissance aircraft and we've brought the AWACS E-3D, which is the upgraded version of your AWACS.
We've also brought a lot of bombers with precision bombs, which means we could minimize the risk of civilian casualty.
BLITZER: And you're fully integrated with the U.S. Air Force in terms of knowing what each side is obviously doing.
FYNES: Totally. We plan together. We're going to escort your bombers and you'll be escorting ours.
BLITZER: Let's talk about a couple of the specific aircraft that you have. The Canberra -- what about that?
FYNES: The Canberra is a very old airplane, but it's got really modern kit. It's exactly the same as a lot of the equipment in your airplanes. It provides an extremely effective reconnaissance role letting us know what Saddam's going to be up to.
BLITZER: And the Nimrod?
FYNES: The Nimrod's maritime aircraft. It's going to protect the fleet.
Saddam doesn't have a very big navy, just a couple of ships. But there is a serious terrorist threat from small boats and our Nimrods will help protect both our fleets from that.
BLITZER: How are your troops prepared in terms of morale right now, potentially on the eve of warfare?
FYNES: They're ready. They're a little bit apprehensive, as you'd expect, but they're determined and they're very, very confident in the training. We know we can get this job done if we're actually told to do it and we can do it efficiently and quickly with minimum casualties to the Iraqi civilians.
We're not interested in fighting Iraqi civilians. We only want to get those weapons of mass destruction.
BLITZER: Captain Fynes, good luck to you and all your fellow troops.
FYNES: Thank you.
BLITZER: Thank you very much.
A country divided over the prospect of war. Coming up, voices of America speaking out for and against the looming conflict.
Plus, he was the first to show the world the bombing in Baghdad in 1991. My former colleague Bernard Shaw on the next Gulf War.
You're watching CNN, the most trusted name in news.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: We want to take you live right now to Union Square in Manhattan. That's where hundreds of people have gathered to protest the looming war against Iraq. One anti-war group says it will protest here every day until the United States abandons military action in Iraq.
Meanwhile, another group says it's planning another massive anti- war march in New York City this Saturday. It's the last protest in February drew more than 100,000 people. While the president's course of action now seems all but certain, the mood of the country is certainly not. Although polls show the majority support military action to oust Saddam Hussein, it's far from a national consensus.
Our Chicago bureau chief, Jeff Flock, is joining us now live with more -- Jeff.
JEFF FLOCK, CNN CHICAGO BUREAU CHIEF: Indeed, Wolf.
We have been out on the streets of this country, all across the country today and while we have found far from a universal support for this war, we have found near absolute support for the men and women who will fight it.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: If our troops can see pictures of their hometown streets, streets that they know, with yellow ribbons of support for them, that picture is worth a thousand words.
FLOCK (voice-over): In Naperville, Illinois, there are streets with yellow ribbons on every tree. One is for Susan Blake's son in the 101st Airborne.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm not taking my yellow ribbon off. Garrett will take it off when he comes home.
FLOCK: Wanting the troops to come home safe is something everyone can agree on. But on the wisdom of war, it is a nation divided.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think it's something that's been needed for a while.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I disagree.
FLOCK: But we heard, from the streets of L.A. to State Street in Chicago to the street cars in San Francisco is concern.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I am frightened for my country. I am praying for my country and its president, and I think the decision is his and he's made it and so I think everybody should support him.
FLOCK: But not every one does.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm a former officer in the United States army. So I'm no pacifist.
FLOCK: Chicago lawyer Ken McNeil (ph) says this war is not justified.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And I, for one, have noticed that since September 11, nothing over here has blown up. Right? I mean, I think the threat is greatly exaggerated.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I agree this we should get rid of Saddam. I just don't like the fact that we could be killing innocent people.
FLOCK: This is Atlanta: skepticism.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's not our country. We can't sit there and tell some body else how they're going to run their country.
FLOCK: This is New York: strong support for President Bush.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Every body else says we want to step up when we stepped up to the plate and he's doing what he should do.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FLOCK: Indeed, Wolf, some of the people who had been opposed to the war with the thought that perhaps they could head it off, now are throwing in the towel, believing that it is inevitable no matter what they think.
Back to you.
BLITZER: Thanks very much, Jeff Flock, our Chicago bureau chief.
So how do reporters cut through government propaganda to get the real war story? I'll put that question and other questions to my former colleague ,the award-winning journalist Bernard Shaw. We'll get to Bernie as soon as we get back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MOHAMMED ALDOURI, IRAQI AMB. TO U.N.: This is the war, my dear. This is a war. So how can you have a safe place in the war? And you are the invader at the same time? If you're invader how you can ask for a safe place for you?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLITZER: The Iraqi ambassador to the United Nations Mohammed AlDouri speaking earlier today.
Few journalists know more about war reporting than my next guest. The former anchor Bernard Shaw was one of three CNN correspondents who showed the entire world the bombing of Baghdad and the start of the Persian Gulf War a dozen years ago. Bernard Shaw is joining us now live from Washington.
Bernie, thanks very much for joining us. At what point does a journalist who may be in Baghdad right now decide, you know, it's not worth dying for, it's more important to get out rather than tell the story?
BERNARD SHAW, FORMER CNN ANCHOR: Wolf, if the war is not begun it's a relatively easy decision to take, because with no war you can usually negotiate those highways, the desert highways and roads out of Baghdad, into Amman, Jordan. You won't be able to fly out. But once the war begins you're in deep difficulty, because then you are subject to all kinds of things. I'd be concerned about citizen rage, for example. I'd also be concerned about the breakdown of law and order with advancing troops moving into -- on Baghdad, towards Baghdad. I'd be concerned about the breakdown of law and order in a city of more than 5 million people, many of them very heavily armed civilians.
And of course, I'd be concerned about undisciplined acts by undisciplined soldiers.
BLITZER: So what I hear you saying, Bernie, if you were in Baghdad tonight, you'd probably say it's important to get out of town right away?
SHAW: I think so, but -- a network such as this one, CNN, my favorite network, has a special commitment to this story. It has a special culture and people around the world have come to depend on CNN in this kind of situation.
It is a very tough call for the women and men not just at CNN, but other networks and newspapers and people in the news media at large. But once you decide to stay, you're at the mercy of events. And also there's the question of how much can the government guarantee your safety? Obviously, it cannot.
So it's a roll of the dice, but of course no story is worth the loss of life in the reporting ranks.
BLITZER: We did hear President Bush in his speech last night urge journalists to get out of Baghdad. Bernie, what about the other issue I want to talk about, dealing with propaganda at this late stage on the eve of a war? Propaganda being -- coming out, late's say from the Iraqi side, and from the U.S. side as well, designed to psychologically unnerve the Iraqis. How do you deal with that?
SHAW: Well, first of all, I put great faith in the intelligence of viewers, listeners and readers. What you want to do is point out the contradiction. There are certain code phrases that journalists use. The government claims, the government alleges. And you have a responsibility to those viewers, listeners and readers to pull out possible contradictions.
And also you must in your reporting always strive to tell the viewers, listeners and readers under what conditions you're working, what you're not allowed to see, what you're not allowed to report. And after you do that, and if you've been factual and dispassionate in your reporting, believe me, people reading your information, hearing, receiving your information, they're going to make their own good judgments about the information at hand.
BLITZER: And the viewers, the readers, the listeners have to rely on the experience of journalists, well-trained journalists, none better trained than Bernard Shaw one of my personal heroes.
Bernie, let's do this again. Thanks very much, as usual, for joining us.
SHAW: Thank you. Good to be back, Wolf.
BLITZER: And we'll the results of "Our Web Question of the Day" right when we come back. Thanks very much.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Now here's how you're weighing in on "Our Web Question of the Day". Will an attack on Iraq make the U.S. more safe or less safe in the long run? Forty-two percent of you said safer, 58 percent said less safe. Remember, this is not a scientific poll.
That's all of the time we have today. I'll be back tomorrow at noon Eastern, 5 p.m. Eastern, twice a day. Until then, thanks for watching. I'm Wolf Blitzer in Kuwait City. LOU DOBBS MONEYLINE is up next.
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 18, 2003 - 17:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
WOLF BLITZER, HOST: We're almost midway through President Bush's 48-hour ultimatum to Saddam Hussein.
Today, formal rejection from Baghdad, where elite Republican Guard units are now in their own final preparations for a war.
We're live in Kuwait City. The top concern here: will Iraq launch its own preemptive strike in the coming hours. Indeed, everyone in this part of the world is bracing for the worst, even as Homeland Security officials back in the United States are bracing for terrorist strikes.
We're watching all these developments.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANNOUNCER: Now, a special edition of WOLF BLITZER REPORTS, SHOWDOWN: IRAQ. On the brink of war.
BLITZER (voice-over): Ultimatum rejected.
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The tyrant will soon be gone.
BLITZER: But not voluntarily. Saddam Hussein in battle dress gives his answer.
President Bush behind closed doors with the war planners. How far away is that grim Oval Office announcement?
U.N. inspectors move out of Iraq. As U.S. and British forces move toward the border, the deadly agents that may be on the other side. We're on the scene with the troops and throughout a very uneasy neighborhood.
Unease at home, code orange.
TOM RIDGE, HOMELAND SECURITY SECRETARY: We should prepare for potential attacks, either here or abroad at this time.
BLITZER: And waiting for the bombs to drop. I'll speak with Bernard Shaw, a CNN veteran from the first Gulf War.
ANNOUNCER: WOLF BLITZER REPORTS, live from the Persian Gulf, in Kuwait, starts right now.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER: It's just after 1 a.m. here in Kuwait City. Iraqi President Saddam Hussein has 27 hours before President Bush's ultimatum expires. Hello from the Persian Gulf. I'm Wolf Blitzer reporting tonight live from Kuwait City.
Here's a look at the top stories we're tracking this hour in the showdown with Iraq.
Baghdad has officially rejected the demand that Saddam Hussein go into exile. His foreign minister said U.S. and British leaders are the ones who should leave office, calling President Bush and I'm quoting here, "idiot man."
The U.S. military says the Iraqi Republican Guard units may now have munitions filled with a deadly nerve agent and with mustard gas. U.S. military broadcasts are urging Iraqi troops to leave their weapons and vehicles in the field and return to their barracks.
Duct tape and plastic sheeting: Israelis were told today to start sealing rooms in their homes against possible chemical or biological attacks from Iraq. Iraq fired 39 SCUDs at Israel in the first Persian Gulf War, but used no germs or poison gas.
Code orange: with the U.S. back on high alert, top intelligence officials say it's a virtual certainty that terrorists will try to launch multiple attacks coinciding with a war in Iraq. Small scale strikes by al Qaeda are considered likely, but officials aren't sure if al Qaeda can still carry out more spectacular attacks.
And this late development, the federal government has imposed new flight restrictions on airspace over Disneyland and Disney world and the New York City area, as well as the nation's capitol.
Here in Kuwait City, residents are under no illusions. Some have left the country. They're worried that Saddam Hussein could order a chemical or biological attack in the opening hours of war. Gas masks have been made available.
Still many Kuwaitis say they're counting on the United States to protect them. More on the tensions here later, but first the decisions that impact the troops abroad and your safety at home.
We'll go live to the Pentagon, to New York and to Carroll, but we begin with our senior White House correspondent, John King -- John.
JOHN KING, CNN SR. WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, as you noted, that deadline to Saddam Hussein now just 27 hours away and senior administration officials say President Bush reserves the right to act to strike almost immediately after it lapses.
Yet two senior administration officials telling CNN today that the president might choose to wait a bit. Echoing the words of the president last night, these two officials said America will strike at a time of its choosing.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
(voice-over) It was 34 hours and counting when the Pentagon brass arrived to brief the president on the war plans, near the 33-hour mark when they emerged knowing Iraq already had rejected the U.S. ultimatum.
ARI FLEISCHER, WHITE HOUSE SPOKESMAN: Saddam Hussein, if he doesn't leave the country, will make his final mistake.
KING: Senior U.S. officials say the president and vice president were told the troops are ready and these officials say an order to attack could come as early as Wednesday.
Only Great Britain and perhaps Australia are slated to directly join the fight. But the administration listed 30 countries it says are part of the U.S.-led coalition from Italy, Iceland, Spain and South Korea to the Czech Republic, Nicaragua, tiny Albania and the impoverished east African nation of Eritrea.
Mr. President called presidents Putin of Russia and Hu of China, voicing hope long-term relations would not suffer despite profound disagreements over war in Iraq.
White House anger at France and Germany runs deeper, even more so after fresh criticism of Mr. Bush's march to war.
JACQUES CHIRAC, FRENCH PRESIDENT (through translator: There's no justification for this unilateral resort to war.
GERHARD SHROEDER, GERMAN CHANCELLOR (through translator): There is no reason to end this disarmament process now.
KING: Dissent at home, as well. Leading Democrats accused the president of botching diplomacy and say his domestic agenda is at odds with the country's war time footing.
SEN. EDWARD KENNEDY (D), MASSACHUSETTS: We should not have a tax cut until we are going to pay for the war in Iraq, pay for the occupation in Iraq and also pay for the return of the troops.
KING: The treasury and commerce secretaries are telling the president the economic impact of war should not be all that severe. And the White House hopes a short conflict will boost not only financial markets but also Mr. Bush's clout on Capitol Hill.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
Now even if Saddam Hussein suddenly decides to go into exile, the White House says U.S. troops would still enter Iraq to destroy its weapons and secure its borders, but no one here expects the Iraqi leader to go peacefully.
Plans already in the works for an Oval Office address announcing the beginning of hostilities. Some say it could come as early as Wednesday, some expect the president to wait just a little bit -- Wolf. BLITZER: John King at the White House. John, thanks very much.
And reaction to President Bush's ultimatum ranges from praise to acceptance to anger. Here's a sampling of world opinion.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
(voice-over) French President Jacques Chirac remains opposed to attacking Iraq, but with war increasingly likely France says it might offer assistance under certain circumstances.
JEAN-DAVID LEVITTE, FRENCH AMBASSADOR TO U.S.: If the war starts and if Saddam Hussein uses chemical or biological weapons, it would change completely the situation.
BLITZER: Despite deep controversy inside his own political party, British Prime Minister Tony Blair supported President Bush in his speech to Parliament.
TONY BLAIR, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: Back away from this confrontation now and future conflicts will be infinitely worse and more devastating in their effects.
BLITZER: Even though Spanish prime minister Jose Maria Aznar has been a strong supporter of the U.S. stance against Iraq, Spain will not join in any attack. Ending weeks of speculation, Mr. Aznar says there will be no Spanish combat troops involved.
Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi backed President Bush's decision to issue an ultimatum, calling the move unavoidable. He offered Japanese support for Iraq's post-war reconstruction.
One hundred anti-war demonstrators marched on the U.S. embassy in the Philippines. Police used clubs to beat them back and at least 11 people were hurt.
South Korea worries that a war in Iraq would increase tension on the Korean Peninsula. At a South Korean cabinet meeting, ministers were warned to be on alert for possible provocation from the north, timed to coincide with hostilities in the Persian Gulf.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
And with just over one day left until the U.S.-mandated deadline, neither Saddam Hussein nor his sons show any sign they'll leave Iraq.
CNN's senior international correspondent, Nic Robertson, is in Baghdad.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is the image Iraq wants the world to see, defiance on the eve of war, a hastily-organized government demonstration showing support for President Saddam Hussein.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We came here to say to Bush all Iraqi people want peace and they are against war.
ROBERTSON: Gun-toting civilians imply defense of every household should U.S. troops arrive.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): Let him try his bad luck here. We are ready for them. Ready with sticks, anything.
ROBERTSON: Pictures of the same demo were carried on Iraqi television, implying for anyone here who may doubt it, President Saddam Hussein is firmly in control.
Meeting top politicians earlier in the day, the Iraqi leader was seen in his military uniform for the first time in two years. He denounced President Bush's ultimatum as debased and flawed.
Indeed, his elder son, Uday Saddam Hussein, in a statement on his own television station, said it was President Bush who should leave office.
The defiant language echoed at a news conference by Iraq's foreign minister, who called President Bush an idiot and said Iraq has done all it can to avoid war.
NAJI SABRI, IRAQI FOREIGN MINISTER: The radical, I think, solution to key this window open is for the two despots in Washington to leave office. Once they leave office they can open the window for diplomacy all around the world to solve all the disputes away from the cowboy policy.
ROBERTSON: Sabri also described the Iraqi leader as sure of victory.
SABRI: He is relaxed. He is good, and he is sure of beating this evil aggression against Iraq.
ROBERTSON (on camera): While there is acceptance here among Iraq's leaders that war is a certainty, there is some satisfaction that the United States and Great Britain do not have strong U.N. backing to conduct it.
Nic Robertson, CNN, Baghdad.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER: Meanwhile, U.S.-led coalition forces are on the move. These British troops were heading north through the Kuwaiti Desert toward the Iraqi border earlier today. Witnesses report seeing hundreds of military vehicles on a highway heading in the same direction.
Have Saddam Hussein's best troops been armed with deadly chemical munitions? Can the United States persuade the Iraqi military to lay its weapons down?
Let's go live to our senior Pentagon correspondent Jamie McIntyre who has a breaking news development right now -- Jamie. JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN SR. PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, this just in to CNN. According to sources here at Pentagon, this operation against Iraq now has a name. It's going to be called "Operation Iraqi Freedom." At least that's the name they've settled on, although officials caution, until it's officially announced by Defense Secretary Rumsfeld or perhaps President Bush it won't be final.
According to sources this name was picked over Operation Desert Freedom because it was felt it more accurately described the objective of the military mission.
Right now the objective is a psychological campaign, aimed at trying to get the Iraqi to surrender before a shots is fired. The Pentagon says it's not just wishful thinking.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
(voice-over): Between now and when the war begins the Iraqi military will be showered with U.S. propaganda, aimed at convincing Iraqi troops to keep their guns pointed down and to give up without a fight.
BUSH: If war comes do not fight for a dying regime that is not worth your own life.
MCINTYRE: President Bush's message is being broadcast in Arabic into Iraq by a U.S. military airborne radio station. Sources say the clear instructions to avoid attack promised by President Bush tell the Iraqi military to lay down their weapons, park their tanks or other military vehicles and remain in their barracks until U.S. forces arrive.
If the Iraqi troops Don't resist and technically Don't surrender, that could reduce the number of POWs the U.S. military is responsible for. And in turn, that can allow ground troops to leapfrog over Iraqi regular forces in the south and more quickly move against the Republican Guard, which has dispersed around Baghdad and Saddam Hussein's ancestral home of Tikrit.
In addition, sources say, U.S. and British troops in Kuwait are hoping to score a quick victory in the southern poor town of Basra, which has a Shiite population that tends not to support Saddam Hussein.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
The theory there is that if the U.S. were to get some pictures of jubilant Iraqis in Basra, that could have a demoralizing effect that could cause other Iraqi military units to fold.
The big question now, will the Republican Guard fight? Will they use chemical weapons? Some evidence that some Republican Guard units may have artillery shells filled with poison gas. Another indicator that they might use chemical weapons: the commander who's been put in charge of forces in the south is connected to the use of chemical weapons against the Kurds in 1998 -- Wolf. BLITZER: Jamie McIntyre with the latest information at the Pentagon. Jamie, thanks very much.
And let's take a further look at these late developments. We want to talk more about the first wave of the looming war could, which could come, as we say, almost at any time.
It would begin with an aerial assault. That would include, of course, U.S. bombers, jets, AWACs, refueling planes. Joining us now for a closer look at what the primary targets would be in the first 24 hours is our military analyst, retired U.S. Air Force Major General Don Shepperd.
General Shepperd, thanks so much for joining us. What would be the primary targets during the first 24 hours?
MAJ. GEN. DON SHEPPERD, U.S. AIR FORCE (RET.): Well, my pleasure, Wolf.
And the primary targets are going to be the air defense network, command and control sites, suspected weapons of mass destruction and leadership sites.
We have a small animation clip here that might be of interest to the viewers, showing what the air defenses are going to be like. This is SA-2 missiles from the Vietnam era but much improved. They're going to be ringing Baghdad with what they have called a hornet's nest.
This is a radar site. The radars find the airplanes, lock the missiles onto them. Those radars are jammed by EA-6B jamming aircraft that screw up the scopes of the SAM, surface-to-air missile, operators inside, giving them multiple targets to work against the guidance radars. The airplanes then go in to hit the -- not only the radar, but also the missile sites.
And they will also use homing anti-radiation missiles filed by air force and naval aircraft and those aircraft defend themselves with chap and flare to further confuse the radar and protect themselves against shoulder-fired missiles and the missiles themselves home on the radar.
And it's going to be a tough air battle early on here, Wolf. A lot of it depends upon stealth and hitting those targets early, taking down the air defenses so we can do the other work from a military standpoint.
BLITZER: General Shepard, I know there's great concern about casualties, Iraqi civilian casualties, especially. What is the U.S. military doing to try to prevent those kinds of casualties, what they call collateral damage?
SHEPPERD: There will be civilian casualties, Wolf, and it depends upon where Saddam puts his defenses and important targets in relation to civilian targets that will cause collateral damage. What the U.S. military does is it works all of these targets backwards through a computer to see what the collateral damage will likely be and predicts. Then it goes to see if it needs to change the type of weapon, the fusing of the weapon, the timing of the strike, of the depth of the fusing, if you will, and also maybe come in from a different angle.
All of these are carefully analyzed, and no matter how carefully you analyze it, there still will be civilian casualties. But most of it depends upon where Saddam locates his military in relation to those civilian targets, Wolf.
BLITZER: Will there, General Shepperd, be a simultaneous effort to get Saddam Hussein and his sons, either capture or kill them?
SHEPPERD: I think so, but not in the way that you are asking from the standpoint of assassination. These are leadership targets we will be going after. Anytime there's a collection of leadership, the U.S. military and the coalition forces will go after that leadership target where they are located, where they are communicating from. And if Saddam and his sons happen to be there, it's bad luck for them.
As far as capturing them, if we get intelligence information, the military will go in probably with special forces, delta teams, that type of thing, if they think they can do it safely with suitable risks for the United States and coalition forces, Wolf.
BLITZER: Our military analyst, General Don Shepard. General Shepard, thanks very much.
And here's your chance to weigh in on the showdown with Iraq. Our Web question of the day is this, "Will an attack on Iraq make the U.S. more safe or less safe in the long run?" We'll have the results later in the broadcast. Please vote at CNN.com/Wolf.
From New York to the golden state, Americans on high alert. We'll go coast to coast to see how cities are beefing up security.
Plus, a massive show of force in the desert. U.S. troops get ready to move on Baghdad.
And will the first victim of this war be truth? A closer look at the propaganda battles. CNN's former anchor, Bernard Shaw will join me live.
You're watching CNN, the most trusted name in news.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: New words of warning, the terror threats America faces once an attack on Iraq begins. That's coming up. We're live here in the Persian Gulf and we're back in one moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: You're looking at a live picture of the British parliament, where Prime Minister Tony Blair's government has just survived a vote, a vote 396-217, a vote in favor of his policies as far as Iraq is concerned, 396 to 217. A vote in the British parliament just moments ago in favor of Tony Blair's stance alongside the Bush administration.
As the United States inches closer to a war with Iraq, there's concern that terrorists will retaliate with attacks on U.S. soil. After President Bush's speech last night, the terror threat level was raised to the level orange or high.
And today the State Department's top counter-terrorism official says there's a center they terrorists will try to launch multiple attacks against U.S. targets once a war starts. CNN's Jeanne Meserve has more on the increased threat and U.S. efforts to protect the homeland.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEANNE MESERVE, CNN HOMELAND SECURITY CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Level orange was evident. Even in places where there had been a lot of security, there was more.
CHIEF JOHN TIMONEY, MIAMI POLICE: This city and other cities across America have really goosed it up, if you will.
MESERVE: The looming likelihood of hostilities with Iraq and intelligence assessments that retaliatory attacks are a near certainty prompted the change.
RIDGE: While al Qaeda and those sympathetic to their cause are still a principle threat, the principle threat: Iraqi state agents, Iraqi surrogate groups, other regional extremist organizations and ad hoc groups or disgruntled individuals may use this time period to conduct terrorist attacks against the United States and our interests, either here or abroad.
MESERVE: Under Operation Liberty Shield, as the new national security plan is called, patrols on waterways and ports are being stepped up with security zones around critical infrastructure.
Law enforcement is more visible at airports and new flight restrictions are being put in place in certain U.S. cities, plus Disney World in Orlando and Disneyland in Anaheim.
The plan also calls for increased security at chemical facilities and increased vigilance in food production, just as the general accounting office released reports saying the extent of security precautions in food processing is unclear and the vulnerability of chemical plants unassessed and largely unaddressed.
Meanwhile, on the national mall, a standoff continued with a man who claims his tractor is loaded with explosives. It snarled traffic, shuddered buildings and diverted security assets and attention.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: One cop became three cops and three cops was, like, this whole situation. MESERVE: While it doesn't appear to be a terrorist act, that has it happened at all raises the question, is security even in the nation's capitol what it could or should be?
Jeanne Meserve, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER: The heightened terror alert has cities nationwide quickly moving to increase security. We have reporters covering that part of the story on both coasts.
Rusty Dornin is in San Francisco, but we begin with Jason Carroll in New York where the mayor has briefed reporters -- Jason.
JASON CARROLL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And Wolf, New York City's mayor, Michael Bloomberg, is calling it the most comprehensive terrorism prevention plan the city has ever seen.
It is called "Operation Atlas," and it will go into full effect once war gets underway. It involves several hundred officers within the New York City Police Department. Their job would be to provide extra support, extra surveillance of key sites throughout the city, sites such as bridges, tunnels, the city's subways. Some of these officers, we're now being told, will be equipped with air monitoring devices to check for chemical or biological agents.
The police commissioner also saying today during a press conference, his department is, quote, "tightening the protective net around the city." That will include add patrols at government buildings, the financial district downtown, houses of worship; in addition to that also tourist attractions.
Mayor Bloomberg saying that history has shown that events halfway around the world can very easily disrupt the city here. With "Operation Atlas," he wants to make sure that never happens again -- Wolf.
BLITZER: Jason Carroll in New York.
Meanwhile, California's governor is ordering security in that state increased. CNN's Rusty Dornin is in San Francisco, home of several high profile, potential terrorist attacks -- Rusty.
RUSTY DORNIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, you know, Wolf, it's easy on a day like today to see why the Golden Gate Bridge is considered a national treasure and also why it's high on the list of potential terrorist targets.
Now the Golden Gate Bridge has been on heightened alert since September 11, but when the nation goes into an orange alert there are a few more precautions that kick into place.
One of them is to close this access road which leads underneath the bridge support to Fort Point. There's also another road that leads under the bridge on the other side in Marin County; that is also closed to hikers, joggers and all traffic.
The highway patrol also has inspections and random truck inspections on the road that leads to access to the bridge.
Now the national guard has been here since September 11, ordered here by Governor Davis. Now you have not been seeing those patrols. You don't see them up at street level, but you have seen them over the last few days. You'll see the soldiers or -- excuse me, the troops patrolling in areas near the street surface parts of the bridge.
There are also added air patrols by the California Highway Patrol and the Coast Guard. The governor has also ordered the highway patrol to do surveillance of waterways, electrical grids and other areas during the heightened alert status.
Now, it looks like there will be a lot of disappointed joggers and folks here that won't be able to get near the bottom of the bridge, but we do understand from the Golden Gate Bridge folks that even during a red alert that the bridge will not be closed to traffic or to foot traffic -- Wolf.
BLITZER: Rusty Dornin in San Francisco. Rusty, thanks very much.
Meanwhile Iraq's neighbors are also very much on high alert. Israelis are bracing for possible attacks like the first Gulf War, but this time they're vowing revenge. The latest from Tel Aviv and around the region. That's coming up.
Also, on the brink of war, we'll take you across the Kuwaiti Desert, where U.S. troops are getting ready for the fight of their lives. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: In Iraq and its neighboring countries, the threat of war within hours has nerves, obviously, very much on edge. We have reporters stationed across the region and we begin with the latest on the situation in northern Iraq.
BEN WEDEMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Ben Wedeman in Erbil, northern Iraq. Here the Kurds are bracing for war, many of them moving away as far as possible from the front line.
Now what they're worried about is the possibility that Saddam Hussein will unleash chemical weapons upon them as he did in the late 1980s.
Now the actual state of the Iraqi army in the north doesn't seem to be very good. We have seen them digging deeper trenches, some new weapons on the front lines. But according to villagers who have been watching them for years, those soldiers are in very poor state, a very poor state, morale is low and getting dramatically lower now that it looks like the United States will attack Iraq in the coming hours.
RULA AMIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Rula Amin in Jordan. Here preparations to cope with any war in Iraq have been crippled today by strong wind and a sand storm. Workers who were trying to set up two refugee camps in the desert next to the Iraqi borders have not been able to put up the tent yet. This is something that increases to get these camps ready to receive from about 20-30,000 Iraqi refugees, if they are able to cross the border into Jordan.
western embassies in the capital Amman, including the U.S. Embassy, concerned there may be a threat to westerners as a result of anger in the streets and frustration there. is strong opposition here to any war in Iraq. People are not buying the justification for a war and the government is sending the message to Jordanians that the relationship and the alliance with the United States should not be undermined by differences with the U.S. over Iraq.
Rula Amin, CNN, Ruwashied, Jordan.
HARRIS WHITBECK CNN CORRESPONDENT: The Turkish government is putting the final touches on a resolution that would be presented to the parliament as early as tomorrow. If authorized that motion would allow the United States to use Turkish territory and airspace to launch a Northern front against Iraq. The U.S. military has been preparing the ground here for several weeks now under a previous memorandum of understanding between Turkey and United States. Military equipment, support and logistics equipment has been flowing through several ports in Southern Turkey and headed towards about nine sites, very close to the border between Turkey and Iraq.
Those sites would be prepared to host troops who would go from there into Northern Iraq. The big question is in terms of airspace is what Turkish bases might be used to launch airstrikes against Iraq. In 1991 Incirlik Air Base where we are was used to launch 4,000 air sorties into Iraq, about 3,000 tons of ordinance were dropped on Iraq at that time. People on the base here said they would expect, because of the strategic location of this base, that that would happen this time around.
Harris Whitbeck, CNN, reporting from Incirlik Air Base in southern Turkey.
KELLY WALLACE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Kelly Wallace in Tel Aviv where there continues to be a general sense of calm in the country. Repeated statement by Israeli officials that they believe there is a low probability of a successful Iraqi attack has reduced general anxiety levels in the country. Still the government today instructed citizens to go ahead and prepared a sealed off room also known as a safe room in the events of a chemical or biological attack. So you can find many Israeli families today using duct tape and plastic to go ahead and prepare such a room in their home.
Meantime the Israeli Air Force remains on high alert. Helicopter pilots who would lift off the minute an Iraqi Scud is launched to go ahead and track the missile and direct emergency crews to the area that it hit say they have finalized all their drills. Now they say they are waiting to see if war will come to them. Israeli military officials say they believe the first 48 hours of a U.S.-led attack on Iraq will be most critical when it comes to Israel's security. This is because they believe this is the amount of time it would take U.S. forces to gain control of Western Iraq, the area in Iraq where Saddam Hussein's missiles are believed to be within range of Israel. Back to you.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER: Thanks very much, Kelly Wallace and all of our reporters in the region.
This just in from the British Parliament. A second vote this, one in support of the British Prime Minister Tony Blair and his policy on Iraq has easily passed the British Parliament, 412 in support of Tony Blair's policies, 149 opposed. Tony Blair, winning two important votes in the past several minutes in the House of Commons in London.
Much more coverage coming up including the clock, that clock that is ticking closer to war. A little less than 27 hours before time runs out for Saddam Hussein, but he's digging in and he's digging in very firmly. We're keeping an eye on all of these late-breaking developments.
Plus, firepower in the desert. See how the U.S. Army and the Marine Corps are gearing up for battle.
And journalists staying behind in Baghdad. At what point does it become too dangerous? I'll ask Bernard Shaw who reported live from Baghdad during the first Gulf War.
You're watching CNN, the most trusted name in news.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: On the brink of war here are some of the top stories we're following in the showdown with Iraq right now. No exile. Iraq has rejected the U.S. demand that Saddam Hussein leave the country. The Foreign Minister Naji Sabri (UNINTELLIGIBLE) says it's President Bush who should go into exile and he accuses the United States of trying to colonize the Middle East.
Final preparations, President Bush huddled at the White House with his top national security team. Officials say the president was told the troops are ready for war, adding an attack order could come as soon as tomorrow.
About face: The French President Jacques Chirac says there's still no justification for a unilateral resort to war, but his ambassador to Washington said France may join the battle if, if, Iraq resorts to chemical or biological weapons.
Code orange. With the nation once again at a high alert level, U.S. intelligence officials expect terrorists to attempt multiple attacks linked to a war in Iraq. They say it's a near center they al Qaeda will launch at least small-scale strikes still within its capability.
For U.S.-led forces massed in the Persian Gulf area.
For U.S.-led forces massed in the Persian Gulf area the long way may almost be over.
We have three reports starting with CNN senior international correspondent Walter Rodgers in Northern Kuwait.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WALTER RODGERS, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: I'm Walter Rodgers, CNN, with the U.S. Army 7th Cavalry in the Northern Kuwaiti desert. This unit's tanks and Bradley armored fighting vehicles are all fueled up. Earlier in the day there was an inspection here. Every one of the tanks and Bradley fighting vehicles was seemed to have seven days rations, seven days water, seven days worth of food and an addition seven days work of ammunition.
Some of the Bradley fighting vehicles were so packed with ammunition you could barely climb in or out of them. At one point the tanks were inspected much the way you would drive your car into a filling station. They put the dip stick into the oil to make sure the oil levels were fine. They took the battery caps off to make sure that there was water in the batteries. Now these soldiers are bedded down for the night knowing that at any hour of the night they could be called to move forward because the 48-hour deadline that President Bush gave the Iraqis is clicking down very, very quickly and the men of the 7th Cavalry are more than ready to answer the call to charge.
JASON BELLINI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Jason Bellini with the 15th Marine Expeditionary unit in Kuwait. Well, today felt like pretty typical day, over the last five that we've been embedded here. But it certainly felt different beginning this morning as Marines were talking about the President Bush's speech, none of them got to see it, there aren't any TVs here, few people have radios, but they heard what the president has had to say.
Now instead of the speculation, the rumors that we've been hearing, Marines are talking about hostilities being just days, maybe hours away. One indication some Marines pointed out to me tonight that was we got a hot meal, a very good hot meal, the best one since we've been here. Normally we're eating three MREs a day. They said, hmm, that's little bit suspicious. We're finally getting a really good meal, maybe that's an indication, an indication that war is coming soon and that we'll be leaving this camp where they've been for the last month. Camp Bullrush here in Kuwait.
RYAN CHILCOTE CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Ryan Chilcote at Camp New Jersey with the 101st Airborne. Most of the soldiers didn't hear or see the president's address, at 4:00 this morning Camp New Jersey was pretty isolated. The (UNINTELLIGIBLE) tent home to the one TV that all soldiers have access to was closed and the Internet was down. Still, word got out pretty quickly that President Bush had given President Saddam Hussein and his two sons just 48 hours to get out of Iraq. The soldiers took that as their first firm cue that they might be shipping out soon. (voice-over): The artillery men had the run of the ranges today bringing out their 105 howitzers in their first and maybe their last live fire training exercise.
(on camera): Lastly, the Screaming Eagles hit the camp store en masse today, figuring they might not have too much more time to shop.
Back to you.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER: Thanks to all of our reporters on the front line.
Britain has some 40,000 military personnel here in the Gulf region including a large naval task force and an armored brigade with some 120 tanks. The Royal Air Force has deployed dozens of fighter jets, bombers, helicopter and other critical aircraft.
Joining me here in Kuwait City is the Royal Air Force spokesman in Kuwait, Group Captain Jon Fynes. Captain, thanks very much for joining us.
How concerned are you and your troops about the possibility of the Iraqis in the short term, the hours ahead launching some sort of biological or chemical attack?
GROUP CAPTAIN JON FYNES, ROYAL AIR FORCE: We obviously take the threat very seriously, but we've got extremely good care and we do practice a lot. So, you know, we're confident we can deal with any attack that should it come.
BLITZER: Have you come up with evidence that that's about to happen? Have you seen indications the Iraqi military might be planning such a step?
FYNES: Nothing that I'm aware of, but we do know that he's got these weapons of mass destruction. That's why we are here.
BLITZER: What is specifically, the most important things that British contingent, a robust 40,000 troops is providing this operation?
FYNES: From the Royal Air Force perspective, we are bringing 100 airplanes. In particular, we are bringing some that the United States will be very short of.
We've got a large tanker force. We've got quite a lot of reconnaissance aircraft and we've brought the AWACS E-3D, which is the upgraded version of your AWACS.
We've also brought a lot of bombers with precision bombs, which means we could minimize the risk of civilian casualty.
BLITZER: And you're fully integrated with the U.S. Air Force in terms of knowing what each side is obviously doing.
FYNES: Totally. We plan together. We're going to escort your bombers and you'll be escorting ours.
BLITZER: Let's talk about a couple of the specific aircraft that you have. The Canberra -- what about that?
FYNES: The Canberra is a very old airplane, but it's got really modern kit. It's exactly the same as a lot of the equipment in your airplanes. It provides an extremely effective reconnaissance role letting us know what Saddam's going to be up to.
BLITZER: And the Nimrod?
FYNES: The Nimrod's maritime aircraft. It's going to protect the fleet.
Saddam doesn't have a very big navy, just a couple of ships. But there is a serious terrorist threat from small boats and our Nimrods will help protect both our fleets from that.
BLITZER: How are your troops prepared in terms of morale right now, potentially on the eve of warfare?
FYNES: They're ready. They're a little bit apprehensive, as you'd expect, but they're determined and they're very, very confident in the training. We know we can get this job done if we're actually told to do it and we can do it efficiently and quickly with minimum casualties to the Iraqi civilians.
We're not interested in fighting Iraqi civilians. We only want to get those weapons of mass destruction.
BLITZER: Captain Fynes, good luck to you and all your fellow troops.
FYNES: Thank you.
BLITZER: Thank you very much.
A country divided over the prospect of war. Coming up, voices of America speaking out for and against the looming conflict.
Plus, he was the first to show the world the bombing in Baghdad in 1991. My former colleague Bernard Shaw on the next Gulf War.
You're watching CNN, the most trusted name in news.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: We want to take you live right now to Union Square in Manhattan. That's where hundreds of people have gathered to protest the looming war against Iraq. One anti-war group says it will protest here every day until the United States abandons military action in Iraq.
Meanwhile, another group says it's planning another massive anti- war march in New York City this Saturday. It's the last protest in February drew more than 100,000 people. While the president's course of action now seems all but certain, the mood of the country is certainly not. Although polls show the majority support military action to oust Saddam Hussein, it's far from a national consensus.
Our Chicago bureau chief, Jeff Flock, is joining us now live with more -- Jeff.
JEFF FLOCK, CNN CHICAGO BUREAU CHIEF: Indeed, Wolf.
We have been out on the streets of this country, all across the country today and while we have found far from a universal support for this war, we have found near absolute support for the men and women who will fight it.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: If our troops can see pictures of their hometown streets, streets that they know, with yellow ribbons of support for them, that picture is worth a thousand words.
FLOCK (voice-over): In Naperville, Illinois, there are streets with yellow ribbons on every tree. One is for Susan Blake's son in the 101st Airborne.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm not taking my yellow ribbon off. Garrett will take it off when he comes home.
FLOCK: Wanting the troops to come home safe is something everyone can agree on. But on the wisdom of war, it is a nation divided.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think it's something that's been needed for a while.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I disagree.
FLOCK: But we heard, from the streets of L.A. to State Street in Chicago to the street cars in San Francisco is concern.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I am frightened for my country. I am praying for my country and its president, and I think the decision is his and he's made it and so I think everybody should support him.
FLOCK: But not every one does.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm a former officer in the United States army. So I'm no pacifist.
FLOCK: Chicago lawyer Ken McNeil (ph) says this war is not justified.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And I, for one, have noticed that since September 11, nothing over here has blown up. Right? I mean, I think the threat is greatly exaggerated.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I agree this we should get rid of Saddam. I just don't like the fact that we could be killing innocent people.
FLOCK: This is Atlanta: skepticism.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's not our country. We can't sit there and tell some body else how they're going to run their country.
FLOCK: This is New York: strong support for President Bush.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Every body else says we want to step up when we stepped up to the plate and he's doing what he should do.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FLOCK: Indeed, Wolf, some of the people who had been opposed to the war with the thought that perhaps they could head it off, now are throwing in the towel, believing that it is inevitable no matter what they think.
Back to you.
BLITZER: Thanks very much, Jeff Flock, our Chicago bureau chief.
So how do reporters cut through government propaganda to get the real war story? I'll put that question and other questions to my former colleague ,the award-winning journalist Bernard Shaw. We'll get to Bernie as soon as we get back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MOHAMMED ALDOURI, IRAQI AMB. TO U.N.: This is the war, my dear. This is a war. So how can you have a safe place in the war? And you are the invader at the same time? If you're invader how you can ask for a safe place for you?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLITZER: The Iraqi ambassador to the United Nations Mohammed AlDouri speaking earlier today.
Few journalists know more about war reporting than my next guest. The former anchor Bernard Shaw was one of three CNN correspondents who showed the entire world the bombing of Baghdad and the start of the Persian Gulf War a dozen years ago. Bernard Shaw is joining us now live from Washington.
Bernie, thanks very much for joining us. At what point does a journalist who may be in Baghdad right now decide, you know, it's not worth dying for, it's more important to get out rather than tell the story?
BERNARD SHAW, FORMER CNN ANCHOR: Wolf, if the war is not begun it's a relatively easy decision to take, because with no war you can usually negotiate those highways, the desert highways and roads out of Baghdad, into Amman, Jordan. You won't be able to fly out. But once the war begins you're in deep difficulty, because then you are subject to all kinds of things. I'd be concerned about citizen rage, for example. I'd also be concerned about the breakdown of law and order with advancing troops moving into -- on Baghdad, towards Baghdad. I'd be concerned about the breakdown of law and order in a city of more than 5 million people, many of them very heavily armed civilians.
And of course, I'd be concerned about undisciplined acts by undisciplined soldiers.
BLITZER: So what I hear you saying, Bernie, if you were in Baghdad tonight, you'd probably say it's important to get out of town right away?
SHAW: I think so, but -- a network such as this one, CNN, my favorite network, has a special commitment to this story. It has a special culture and people around the world have come to depend on CNN in this kind of situation.
It is a very tough call for the women and men not just at CNN, but other networks and newspapers and people in the news media at large. But once you decide to stay, you're at the mercy of events. And also there's the question of how much can the government guarantee your safety? Obviously, it cannot.
So it's a roll of the dice, but of course no story is worth the loss of life in the reporting ranks.
BLITZER: We did hear President Bush in his speech last night urge journalists to get out of Baghdad. Bernie, what about the other issue I want to talk about, dealing with propaganda at this late stage on the eve of a war? Propaganda being -- coming out, late's say from the Iraqi side, and from the U.S. side as well, designed to psychologically unnerve the Iraqis. How do you deal with that?
SHAW: Well, first of all, I put great faith in the intelligence of viewers, listeners and readers. What you want to do is point out the contradiction. There are certain code phrases that journalists use. The government claims, the government alleges. And you have a responsibility to those viewers, listeners and readers to pull out possible contradictions.
And also you must in your reporting always strive to tell the viewers, listeners and readers under what conditions you're working, what you're not allowed to see, what you're not allowed to report. And after you do that, and if you've been factual and dispassionate in your reporting, believe me, people reading your information, hearing, receiving your information, they're going to make their own good judgments about the information at hand.
BLITZER: And the viewers, the readers, the listeners have to rely on the experience of journalists, well-trained journalists, none better trained than Bernard Shaw one of my personal heroes.
Bernie, let's do this again. Thanks very much, as usual, for joining us.
SHAW: Thank you. Good to be back, Wolf.
BLITZER: And we'll the results of "Our Web Question of the Day" right when we come back. Thanks very much.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: Now here's how you're weighing in on "Our Web Question of the Day". Will an attack on Iraq make the U.S. more safe or less safe in the long run? Forty-two percent of you said safer, 58 percent said less safe. Remember, this is not a scientific poll.
That's all of the time we have today. I'll be back tomorrow at noon Eastern, 5 p.m. Eastern, twice a day. Until then, thanks for watching. I'm Wolf Blitzer in Kuwait City. LOU DOBBS MONEYLINE is up next.
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