Saddam Calls on Iraqis to Be Strong, Defeat Coalition Forces

Broadcast: Apr 04, 2003

 

Iraqi President Saddam Hussein appeared on state television Friday, calling on Iraqis to be strong to defeat coalition¹ forces.

Mr. Hussein 's speech came a short while after an Iraqi official warned that coalition forces would be subject to unconventional attacks.

Mr. Hussein promised the Iraqi people victory, saying that dignity belongs to them. He also said that Iraqis should use whatever weapons they have to defeat coalition forces.

Mr. Hussein told his countrymen they are a great people. He said the men of the Iraqi armed forces are strong and that Iraqis are the ones charged with the task of "¹⁾Jihad," or holy war, against invading forces.

It was not clear from the broadcast, whether the speech was live or was taped earlier. But it did contain references³ to an event that happened last week, the downing of a U.S. Apache helicopter.

On Thursday, U.S. officials said they believed all images of the Iraqi leader that have been broadcast since the war began had been taped prior to the war. But on Friday, a U.S. official said the reference² to the helicopter suggests the speech was made after a coalition ²⁾airstrike, March 20, on Saddam's Baghdad bunker. But the official said the speech was not conclusive⁴ proof that Saddam was still alive.

Shortly before the Iraqi leader's address, the county's information minister, Mohammed Said al-Sahhaf, gave a news conference in which he warned that coalition forces would face what he called "unconventional attacks" at Saddam International Airport, which coalition forces took control of on Friday and renamed Baghdad International Airport.

Mr. al-Sahhaf said Iraq would not use chemical or biological weapons. But he said it will do something that will be what he called a great example for coalition forces.

Tetiana Anderson for VOA news, Cairo.

 

1)    Jihad [dVi5hB:d]n.讨伐异教徒, 拥护运动

2)    airstrike空袭

1 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。

2 reference   

n.提到，说到，暗示，查看，查阅

参考例句：

• We spent days going through all related reference material.我们花了好多天功夫查阅所有有关的参考资料。
• I like to have my reference books within my reach.我喜欢把参考书放到伸手可取的地方。

3 references   

n.参考( reference的名词复数 )；证明书；（为方便查询所用的）标记；（帮助或意见的）征求

参考例句：

• Applications with a full curriculum vitae and two references should reach the Principal by June 12th. 申请书连同完整个人简历和两份推荐信必须在6月12日以前送达校长处。
• The book is full of references to growing up in India. 这本书谈到许多在印度怎样长大成人的事。

4 conclusive   

adj.最后的，结论的；确凿的，消除怀疑的

参考例句：

• They produced some fairly conclusive evidence.他们提供了一些相当确凿的证据。
• Franklin did not believe that the French tests were conclusive.富兰克林不相信这个法国人的实验是结论性的。