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CNN SHOWDOWN: IRAQ
Psychological Operations Part of U.S. Forces Repertoire
Aired March 31, 2003 - 12:06 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Meanwhile, coalition forces are using various strategies to try and fight Iraqi troop resistance. One is psychological. U.S. Special Forces let CNN correspondent Mike Boettcher join them on a night mission around Basra as they put that strategy to work.
Mike's joining us now by phone. Mike, tell us what's going on on your front.
MIKE BOETTCHER, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, as I look, the lights of Basra are twinkling and they're still on. It's a very, very dark night, and also eerily quiet. Usually this time of night we hear artillery volleys.
Now before dusk, there was -- there were several volleys of rocket-assisted artillery fired by the British to the north of Basra. We are told those are fired at Iraqi positions in that area. And it went on for quite some time; the noise was deafening. But in this area where we are now...
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BOETTCHER (voice-over): The sun sets over Basra and the temperature cools. The war heats up, or does it? U.S. Special Operations Forces consider themselves a force multiplier, and tonight they will literally be.
Their strategy at one special operations: a Humvee with a loud speaker mounted on top to one British tank and four armored vehicles. And suddenly this tiny force sounds like an invading division. It is called psychological operations, or psy-ops; part of the U.S. Special Forces repertoire.
Their speaker blares the music of disinformation and confusion, broadcast at air-splitting decibels. The audiotape of recorded tank sounds plays for more than an hour. A show meant for the ears of Iraqi forces in Basra a short distance away.
Adding to the realism, flares are fired to illuminate Iraqi positions. And British tanks fire occasional rounds at Iraqi targets. The man orchestrating the racket -- a 50-year-old special operations veteran who calls this war his last rodeo -- turns the speaker in several directions to add to the illusion of a massive frontal attack. Occasionally, Iraqi combatants fire back with mortars, machine guns and artillery.
The coalition hopes this grand deception will force the Iraqis to move troops where they don't need to be moved, make them look where they don't need to look. Around Basra, the battlefield has become a true twilight zone, where fact and fiction are indistinguishable in the inky blackness of a moonless night.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BOETTCHER: That video was shot by cameraman David Rust (ph). We were invited on that mission by U.S. special operations.
There are several missions, some of them secret, that continued during the night. That's where most of the activity occurs. But during the daytime, the battle still continues for the hearts and minds at civil affairs units, as Special Operations Forces still go out, still try to feed targeted villages that they can get to, and also planning to bring in more food, more humanitarian assistance -- Wolf.
BLITZER: Mike, when most people hear about Special Operations Forces, they think of guys who go out there in the still of night, commandos, do these kinds of daring missions. They don't necessarily think of psychological operations, psy-ops as it's called, the psychological warfare. But this does indeed represent a significant portion of the mission of Special Operations Forces, as you've just demonstrated. Do you have a sense of how do they divide these various responsibilities?
BOETTCHER: Well, the Special Operations Forces have several different commands in them. One is psy-ops, one is civil fairs. The other is Special Forces. And all of these various parts of special operations work together.
If you talk to the actual Special Forces, the Green Berets, what the psy-ops people are doing helps them in performing their missions at night. Also, what the civil affairs teams of special operations are doing, going into these villages and trying to win the hearts and minds of the people, help the Special Forces, Green Berets go into an area where they're swimming in a sea of favorable opinion.
So it all works together, and it's quite amazing to watch. And we plan on telling you several more aspects of this. Never before has anyone been allowed to witness special operations in war to this extent, and we plan on showing you much, much more.
BLITZER: And is it based -- is it your sense, as well, Mike, that they have enough linguists, Arabic speakers with them that could help them do the job?
BOETTCHER: They have Arabic speakers with them. They could use more. But right now, they have enough that they are able to conduct their operations.
It is one aspect of this entire operation, and operations before in Afghanistan, where there have been weaknesses, there have been great attempts to recruit people, to send people to send cools to learn Arabic, which is a very difficult language to learn, I'll tell you firsthand. And there still aren't enough. Right now, at the location I am on the outskirts of Basra, they do have enough to perform their mission.
BLITZER: And finally, before I let you go, Mike, what about Iraqi opposition forces? Are they joining with these Special Operation Forces in helping them?
BOETTCHER: That is one aspect that we haven't yet witnessed. I'm not saying it has not occurred, but I would assume that would be one of the most secret aspects of special operations. And we have not seen that.
I know that contact has been made. For example, two days ago, we went along with the Civil Affairs Unit of the special operations and SF Green Berets to a village to deliver food. I know that beforehand contact was made with the cleric of the mosque of that village, so there is a lot of contact.
That's one of the main functions going on right now. And this is truly -- around Basra, this is truly an unconventional war in this area, and it is a war that special operations is tailor-made for.
BLITZER: CNN's Mike Boettcher embedded with U.S. Special Operations Forces now well in Iraq somewhere. Be careful over there. Mike, thanks very much for that solid report.
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