Former CNN reporter says U.S. war planners ignored Iraqi resistance

AP WorldStream via COMTEX ^ | 3-30-03

[Oldeconomybuyer]

CAIRO, Egypt, Mar 30, 2003 (AP WorldStream via COMTEX) -- A former CNN journalist told state-run Iraqi TV that U.S. war planners had misjudged Iraq's determination to stand up to the American-led coalition's invasion force.

"Clearly, the American war plans misjudged the determination of the Iraqi forces," Peter Arnett said during the interview aired Sunday by Iraq's satellite television station and monitored by The Associated Press in Egypt.

Arnett, who won a Pulitzer Prize reporting in Vietnam for The Associated Press, garnered much of his prominence from covering the 1991 Gulf War in Baghdad. He is now reporting from the Iraqi capital for NBC.

During his prerecorded Baghdad studio interview, which was translated by a green military uniform-wearing Iraqi anchor, Arnett said the Bush administration had ignored his and other reports about "the determination of the Iraqi armed forces and the government willingness to fight for their country."

It was not immediately clear when the interview was conducted.

Arnett was the on-air reporter of the 1998 CNN report that accused American forces of using sarin gas on a Laotian village in 1970 to kill U.S. defectors. Two CNN employees were sacked and Arnett was reprimanded over the report, which the station later retracted. Arnett ultimately left the network.

Arnett established close contacts with Iraqi government officials during his several visits to Iraq, but was unable to reflect anti-government sentiments through private interviews with Iraqis without the presence of Information Ministry minders.

President George Bush, the current U.S. leader's father, accused Arnett of being a "traitor" over what he considered were pro-Iraqi reports during the 1991 conflict.

"Whenever I gave a report (in 1991) of civilian casualties or civilian installations destroyed and casualties created, the Pentagon and Bush administration got very angry and called me traitor," he said on Iraqi Television.

Of the current conflict, Arnett also said the current U.S. invasion plan had failed and that American military strategists are now "trying to write another war plan."

[Kip Lange]

Arnett should simply be tried, convicted and hanged for treason!

Naw. We should just let it "slip" to the Iraqis that Arnett is actually a spy for the United States. If he loves 'em so much I'm sure he'll agree to be tried in their courts and accept any sentencing they give him. And then we get to use him as a propaganda tool against the very same capital-E Evil regime he was trying to support.

Oh well, unfortunately, I'm sure he'll continue spewing vile lies until he's awarded the Nobel Peace Prize (which apparently causes brain damage).

On the other hand, we could starve Michael Moore (read: not let him eat breakfast), coat Peter Arnett's naughty bits in butter, and lock them together alone in a room for a couple of hours. It'd be the only time I could ever accuse Moore of having balls -- for lunch, that is.

[OldFriend]

Arnett has been making snide remarks about CNN while he was in Baghdad. Bragging too that the CNN reporter was thrown out of the country but he's still there.

Just heard on several stations that Arnett's been fired from National Geographic and NBC.

Now we have to get that lousy professor from Columbia fired.

[OldFriend]

Yes, that scum. The son of a Colonel stationed in Kuwait was just on FNC. Discussing his feelings about that statement. He is graduating from Columbia next month. He said that the military gets FNC live so they told him to say hello to his dad.

[OldFriend]

I often get so mad at FNC but this morning was just so important. It put a face on the horrific statement by that Columbia professor.

The left has consistently failed to see that words have meaning.

The young man made me so proud to be american.

[Sally II]

By bet is that by the end of the year Peter Arnett will be spreading anti-American propaganda for the Progressives, along with Robert Fisk.