***Operation Iraqi Freedom - Situation Room - Day 22

Oh NO, that's Benedict Arnett on there!!!

641 posted on 04/10/2003 2:56:05 AM PDT by blondee123 (WAR: Saddams choice, not ours!)

lol, yep I should have WARNED you. He always whistles and hums between takes.

642 posted on 04/10/2003 2:57:28 AM PDT by wolficatZ

That looks like a convoy of journalists' vehicles.

While Achmed repeats... "hallo? hallo?"

"I don't know!!! I told you..."

643 posted on 04/10/2003 2:59:12 AM PDT by BagCamAddict

What the heck does Benedict Arnett do, stand around there waiting til he finds someone who will talk to him?? The humming & whistling is annoying!!

644 posted on 04/10/2003 3:01:44 AM PDT by blondee123 (WAR: Saddams choice, not ours!)

If only our troops knew that there were live cameras here... they could take turns running up to the balcony (since they took them off the roof after they got fired upon!) to say HI to their loved ones back home!! That would be ultra cool to see our troops, in groups of 2's and 3's come up and make hams of themselves in front of the camera. How many of them would be fixing their hair?? How many of them would be afraid to go across the river because it was too dangerous over there?? God Bless our Brave and Mighty Troops!!

645 posted on 04/10/2003 3:02:57 AM PDT by BagCamAddict

To: BagCamAddict

The embedded reporters have been giving quite a few of them air time & also letting them use their cell phones. They don't want to go up there with Benedict Arnett there! Ewww! Well going to turn in, been up way too late too many nites. Let's hope this is over soon, with no more casualties!!

646 posted on 04/10/2003 3:05:47 AM PDT by blondee123 (Prez Bush Rules; Our military Rules! God Bless America!)

CBS has the better "zoomed out" view, with the darn wind noise. NTV is "zoomed in". Slackers running cam. The roof cam was way cooler

647 posted on 04/10/2003 3:05:54 AM PDT by wolficatZ

To: BagCamAddict

(morning all) Peter Jennings (who was voted yesterday as the most glum about Baghdad's fall - see drudge) said it was only a "small crowd" yesterday. Probably thought it was only a small crowd that tore down the Berlin wall or who instituted romanian term-limits.

648 posted on 04/10/2003 3:08:27 AM PDT by epluribus_2

According to MSNBC - US Forces Have Taken Control & Are Broadcasting On Iraqi TV.

Thread on FR, but no body/link.

649 posted on 04/10/2003 3:14:54 AM PDT by An.American.Expatriate

To: this_ol_patriot

Sky News says Kirkuk fallen.
Celebrations in the street seen on Turkish TV.

650 posted on 04/10/2003 3:26:42 AM PDT by UnbelievingScumOnTheOtherSide (Rumble Thee Forth...)

To: SendShaqtoIraq

Well I for one prefer my President's mistakes to be mispronunciations as opposed to adultery in the Oval Office.

Uhm, do you really think I'm comparing Bush saying "nuclear" wrong to Clinton's trangressions? If so, please give me some of what you're smoking. :-)

651 posted on 04/10/2003 3:28:04 AM PDT by Kip Lange (The Khaki Pants of Freedom)

To: An.American.Expatriate

Might have been snoozing but haven't seen Fox catch this yet...

652 posted on 04/10/2003 3:29:00 AM PDT by Kip Lange (The Khaki Pants of Freedom)

On the street cam interview with Iraqis by a US translator:

First guy: Looting. If there could be order AND peace, that would be great. Wish for a US-sponsored Government to restore order and peace. Not just for now, but for the future too.

Second guy: (Asked how he feels today vs. yesterday) It's a fundamental change. Before, I couldn't speak to you. Now, I can speak to you, or anyone I want. But what about the Government? What is going to happen to the Gov't? Wants to know where all these Gov't leaders have been all this time (not sure who he is referring to here... Bush/Blair or INC)... We don't want them, where have they been? We have qualified people here. We want our people who have been here, not people who have been sitting at desks for 40 years. Also mentioned water, electricity, etc. needing to be restored.

Third guy: First thing I would ask of Bush is to restore the order and water/electricity, etc. As far as Gov't, we want people from INSIDE Iraq, not people from outside the Gov't. We want help from the US first, maybe even a military police, to keep the order, while we get things going ourselves. We need to stop the burning of the Iraqi Gov't buildings... these buildings belong to the Iraqi people and we need these buildings.

Fourth guy: Thanks God, we are very happy we are tasting freedom for the first time. But there are people who are taking advantage of the situation by stealing. They are not stealing from Saddam Hussein, they are stealing from us, the Iraqi people. He's seen some of the buildings being protected (from looting) and some are not. Asking if the US troops can go on patrol because some of the Regime loyalists have been firing on them, but it is not being seen, so asking if the US troops can protect all the neighborhoods. He saw this with his own eyes, and he helped them, he held the injured. These mortars were coming down and falling near our own homes and our own children were injured. Asks Bush and Blair to improve the Hospital situation, first aid facilities, get the water turned back on. It seems that the American soldiers are afraid of the Iraqis, but they should know that we have nothing to hurt them with, we are not part of the Regime, so they shouldn't be so nervous about us. Asking for Coalition troops to go around and round up weapons, that there are too many weapons in too many people's hands, and they could be picked up by people who don't know how to use them and accidents could happen, so they should be collected. They need to have electricity so they can know what is going on. He walked 20 Kilometers today just to get here so he could find out what was going on... they need electricity so people can listen to the radio so they are not in the dark, so they know what is going on. He felt like a blind person w/no information. I'm 35 years old and I've never seen freedom, I've never had a chance to see democracy and freedom. I've read about it, but I've never seen it with my own eyes. I am ready to work, but there is no work for me. I'm not married, and there is no fufuture for me. Iraq could be the richest country, we have many wonderful things, we have oil, we have history... We need security, we'd love for the Coalition to protect every neighborhood like they've protected the Palestine hotel, we need water, and we need to fix the hospital situation because there are many children who are in hospitals.

Fifth guy: He is from Doha, and he has seen much fighting and there are still many Fedayeen. He is afraid to put up a white flag because the Fedayeen might shoot me. Right now, we have no protection, we have no sponsorship. We are stuck in the middle. You are afraid to go to the coalition because you will be shot in the back by the Fedayeen; you can't stay with the Fedayeen because you will be shot by the Coalition. We have many family and friends in other countries and we can't talk to them, they are worried about us, but I have to come here and talk to you to hope they see this to know we are OK. (there was something else, but I missed it)

And then the feed went black, and it went back to the CBS BagCam.

Wow, that was utterly amazing. And these guys weren't afraid to give their NAMES on CAMERA !! This is freakin' amazing!! (And so heartwarming!!)

653 posted on 04/10/2003 3:30:14 AM PDT by BagCamAddict

Peter Jennings (who was voted yesterday as the most glum about Baghdad's fall - see drudge) said it was only a "small crowd" yesterday. Well, if you consider that is a city of 5-7 million people, yes, it was a VERY small crowd. But if you read what that Iraqi just said on the live-from-the-street interview, he WALKED 20 KILOMETERS JUST SO HE COULD FIND OUT WHAT WAS GOING ON !! So it's quite possible that 6,999,750 people in Baghdad had NO IDEA that there was a party in the circle!! I had wished our guys hadn't helped bring the statue down so soon. I was soooo hoping they would drive through the streets with their loudspeakers, announcing that the statue would be coming down at "noon tomorrow, come one, come all" -- now THAT would have been a sight to see... hundreds of thousands of Iraqis in the circle to help/witness the statue coming down. (You know how they are, they don't believe it unless they see it with their own eyes, otherwise it's just a Hollywood production.)

654 posted on 04/10/2003 3:36:51 AM PDT by BagCamAddict

To: BagCamAddict

Amazingly, that was Pretty Chicken doing those street interviews! He speaks Arabic, explaining why he got this assignment.

Y'know, it occured to me....I knew Richard reminded me of someone the way he tossed his hair all the time. Well, think William Hurt in Broadcast News!

655 posted on 04/10/2003 3:37:18 AM PDT by Timeout (...an angel still rides in the whirlwind and directs this storm--GWB inaugural address)

To: UnbelievingScumOnTheOtherSide

Sky News: Turkey: Kurd force staying in Kirkuk "unacceptable"

656 posted on 04/10/2003 3:39:13 AM PDT by this_ol_patriot

good morning freepers. Wow timeout did you even go to bed? i got a question bout the 4th ID...anyone know where ther are or are going? Tikrit?

657 posted on 04/10/2003 3:39:44 AM PDT by melodie (santa..i have been a good girl this year...all i really really want for xmas is a spec. ops. guy...)

To: An.American.Expatriate

Freedom Television..Sky News showing clips now. Blair talking..arabic subtitles.

658 posted on 04/10/2003 3:42:35 AM PDT by this_ol_patriot

Actually, I went to bed about 10 o'clock last night and slept til 5...first good night's sleep I've had in weeks.

From what's been reported, I'd guess the 4th would be moving toward Baghdad by early next week. They're itchin' to get in there. It'll be interesting to see if Gen. Franks sends them all the way north to deal with Tikrit, but I don't know that he'll wait that long. I feel kinda sorry for them...training for this so long and then left at the dock.

659 posted on 04/10/2003 3:42:55 AM PDT by Timeout (...an angel still rides in the whirlwind and directs this storm--GWB inaugural address)

To: this_ol_patriot

Screw Turkey! I've about had it with these jihadists. Typical arab weenies... all talk no action. If they don't want to cooperate with us, why should they be able to dictate what we do? Do they really want a piece of the 4th ID? They're on their way. I say let the Kurds have Kirkuk, AND their own country. They've been pawns in other peoples schemes for too long.

p.s. good morning all.

660 posted on 04/10/2003 3:43:32 AM PDT by johnb838 (Free Republic of Iraq)

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794

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Operation Iraqi Freedom

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According to MSNBC - US Forces Have Taken Control & Are Broadcasting On Iraqi TV.