¡¡¡¡BAGHDAD, April 4 (Xinhuanet) -- Iraqi President Saddam Hussein appeared on
the Iraqi state television Friday evening, delivering an address to the Iraqi
people.
¡¡¡¡In his address, Saddam, dressed in uniform, called on the Iraqi people to
hit hard and resist the US-led coalition forces.
¡¡¡¡"Most of the time, the invasion army could be resisted and destroyed," he
said.
¡¡¡¡Referring to the shooting down of a US Apache helicopter gunships by an
Iraqi farmer, the Iraqi president praised the braveness of the Iraqi people.
¡¡¡¡"You are the people of the glorious Baghdad...you are the peopleof blade
and symbol of victory," he said.
¡¡¡¡Earlier in the day, a US Central Command spokesman said at a daily briefing
in Doha that US forces have taken control of Saddam International airport, which
is 20 km southwest of the center of Baghdad, and renamed it as Baghdad
International Airport.
¡¡¡¡Brigadier General Vincent Brooks said that coalition forces are positioning
around Baghdad to prevent members of the regime under President Saddam from
leaving the capital city.
¡¡¡¡Meanwhile, reports from Baghdad said terrified Iraqi people were fleeing
into the city after US forces seized the airport.
¡¡¡¡However, at a daily news conference in Baghdad, Iraqi Information Minister
Mohammad Said al-Sahaf said that US forces were isolated in the airport and
Iraqi forces will carry out "unconventional action" against them Friday night.
¡¡¡¡He vowed that the coalition forces would never leave the airport alive.
¡¡¡¡When asked about what it means about "unconventional action," the minister
said "We will carry out something not military," but a "kind of martyrdom
operations." Enditem
¡¡¡¡