Overnight Air Strikes on Iraqi Capital Injures 14, Kills 1
PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: We're going to start off in Baghdad this morning, where, as we just mentioned, it's about four minutes past 3:00 p.m. there. Rym Brahimi joins us on the telephone from the Iraqi capital. Rym -- good morning.</s>RYM BRAHIMI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, Paula. A very calm day indeed, after this night and early morning of military action, of bombing of the Iraqi capital. A few people were able to sneak out, and just a few cars were out, emerged during the early hours of the afternoon, and now there is even less so. There was a group of kids even playing football, but it seemed they only stayed out for half-an-hour and then went back. Now, we're hearing from hospital sources here in Baghdad, Paula, that 14 people have been injured and one person was killed in the night air strikes. The early morning air strikes started shortly before the sun was up at about 5:30 a.m. There was thud, and then air raid sirens could be heard. Then we heard a lot of anti-aircraft. There was a lull for a few minutes, and then an intense round of anti-aircraft fire. You could even see an orange trace of fire in the sky, although it was a very hazy sky due to a sand storm and dust the day before. Now, half-an-hour after that first all-clear signal, President Saddam Hussein was shown on Iraqi TV addressing not only the Iraqi people, but also what he calls friends of allied countries, calling on them to observe what he said was President Bush ignoring their efforts to avert war. He also said that this was a battle waged by the United States against Arabs and Muslims, as well as the rest of humanity. Now, the minister of information, Paula, spoke to reporters a short while ago. He told reporters that the U.S. claimed they had bombed Baghdad with 40 missiles in order to target President Saddam Hussein. He said that the rulers of the United States have now become daring. They admit themselves now, said the minister, that they are assassins. He said the American administration had failed, and this was why President Saddam Hussein had come up on Iraqi TV talking to the people. He said this was to show that they had failed, and also to show what he called a peace-loving people in the world that the U.S. was a state that believed in assassination -- Paula.</s>ZAHN: Rym Brahimi, we'll be checking in with you throughout the morning. Thanks so much. TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com. 1>