***Operation Iraqi Freedom - Situation Room - Day 3-LIVE THREAD***

FreeRepublic - Day 2 ^ | 212 March 2003 | An.American.Expatriate/null and void

[null and void]

Good Morning.

This is the continuation Thread of Operation Iraqi Freedom - Day 1- LIVE THREAD.

It is designed for general conversation about the events of the day. In depth discussion of events should be left to individual threads - but links to the threads or other articles is highly encouraged. This allows us to stay abreast of the situation in general, while also providing a means of obtaining specific information.

To all who helped this get started, thank you!

[Carolina]

BBC reporter whining about the shredding of the multilateral institutions through this debate.

[texxie]

I'm watching the BBC feed they are reporting they turned on the B52 engines again at RAF Fairford

[sweetliberty]

B-52's are fixin' to take off from the UK. It takes them 8 hours to get to Baghdad. Sheesh. That's a long time.

[Carolina]

Are you listening to the interview?

[colette_g]

Can't see anyhing on Sky, CNN or Fox yet

[texxie]

this is a great interview on the BBS

[prairiebreeze]

BUSH is the arrogant one in issuing an ultimatum??? Sheesh I know, I know, it's BBC. But still.

Prairie

[Peach]

Dan Rather is reporting some sort of explosion inside 101st Airborne tents ... at least six soldiers injured ... no reports of any killed at this moment ... unknown if attack or accident ... developing ...they've gone back to regular programming. Reporter said they were in full defensive mode; not known if terrorism or not.

[Tree of Liberty]

Fox News confirming B-52's on the tarmac with engines running

[theophilusscribe]

I take back any mean comments I made about Greg Jarrett.

Me too. He done good with that last report! I was surprised . . . Sorry, Greg!

Curious that Chinese reporters, Arab apologists, Jesse Jackson, Jimmy Carter, Fidel Castro, mainstream journalists, American university Professors all spout the same rhetoric.

My family is from Cuba—they came here (legally, thank you) to escape from Castro right after the revolution. Hearing the Iraqis speak about their love for America and thankfulness about President Bush's actions in Iraq, reminds me of the affection my own family has for this awesome country. Its such a deep love.

The liberals will never learn until their backs and hopes are fully broken by a real communism/totalitarianism. So sad to base all one's hopes in systems that were constructed to destroy hope.

[Peach]

There's a new thread started on FR regarding this newest attack on our troops.

[Fledermaus]

that would have them dropping bombs between 9 and 10 am in BAG...wonder if this is to mop up before ground troops move in farther or into the city

[RightOnline]

Yep........we were there........and it rocked. Crowd was at least 500......I think many more.

[debg]

I caught part of it.

Fact is, a couple of weeks ago the United Arab Emirates announced they were sending air support and troops.

What's really interesting to me is that the UAE is rising to counter Al-Jazeera:

Al-Jazeera battles UAE-based TV channels to bring Arabs best war coverage (http://www.spacewar.com/2003/030322040743.qebeehk4.html)

DUBAI (AFP) Mar 22, 2003
With the outbreak of war in Iraq two Arab satellite news channels are battling with Al-Jazeera to provide the best coverage of the conflict and win the hearts of some 300 million viewers.

Qatar's Al-Jazeera, which found fame for its impressive coverage of US operations in Afghanistan in late 2001, is now sharing the Arab news terrain with Abu Dhabi channel and with one-month-old Al-Arabiya.

With exclusive interviews, sometimes shocking images, and live reporting from all four corners of the world, all three channels are vying to attract Arab viewers, who since Al-Jazeera appeared in 1996 have turned away en masse from their much duller national networks.

All three are airing interviews with military analysts to inform viewers of the strategies of the key players in this new Gulf conflict, as well as closely following troops movements and developments.

But each channel has its own special strengths.

Abu Dhabi has carved out a niche for itself in southern Iraq, where on Friday it aired several live reports and shots from Umm Qasr as US and British helicopters deployed vehicles and troops near the port town before seizing it.

Prior to the conflict, the UAE-based channel launched a special "war studio" program dedicated to the hostilities, and is closely following allied troops movements into Iraq.

Al-Jazeera is meanwhile leading the field with live reports from Baghdad and especially from Mosul in the north. It has also strong coverage in northern Iraq's Kurdish region, which could see a Turkish military intervention from the north.

The news giant, which revolutionized the concept of free speech in the Arab world, appears to have the favor of Iraqi authorities, allowing it a freedom of movement unavailable to its rivals.

But it cannot closely follow US troops movements into Iraq because of a ban slapped on the channel in Kuwait.

Dubai-based Al-Arabiya, launched just over a month ago, is presenting itself as a "wise and balanced alternative" to maverick Al-Jazeera, which has offended virtually every regime in the Middle East by taking political taboos and other issues head on.

The more measured tone of Al-Arabiya may give it an edge in winning viewers in Kuwait and among those in the Arab world who find Al-Jazeera somewhat sensationalist.

Ali al-Hedeithy, head of the Middle East News (MEN) company which operates Al-Arabiya, said in February the channel would "offer Arab viewers an alternative, covering news far from any deliberate provocation."

Arab satellite news channels have come far in the decade since the 1991 Gulf War, when the American CNN network dominated war coverage.

Their popularity among Arab viewers is due to the quality of coverage but also, more essentially, because they are free of the censorship and official views imposed on the majority of national news networks in Arab states.

Since early Thursday, the start of the weekend in the Arab world and when US-led air strikes began in Iraq, Arabs around the Middle East have sat it out in front of their television sets following a war which they overwhelmingly oppose.

Abdel Bari Atwan, chief editor of the London-based Al-Qods Al-Arabi newspaper and a regular on Al-Jazeera, neatly summed up Arab sentiment.

"Baghdad is burning and our brother Arabs shift from one channel to another searching for the most terrible images, those that best express the crime of George W. Bush."

[knak]

I thought they took off early this morning?

[prairiebreeze]

Speaking of shredding, wonder if that BBC reporter has read the reports about PEOPLE going through the shredders in Iraq?? And let's remember, it is the Frogs, Krauts and Russkies who's feet the blame lays at for any tarnishing of "Multilateral Institutions".

NY protest getting out of hand. Police trying to disperse crowd. Hauling them away.

Prairie

[Carolina]

Patten is very interesting to listen to. The BBC reporters is sneering (even more than Petah Jennings).

[texxie]

yes I am