We have got to defeat these Sunni remnants in the Sunni Triangle left over from Saddam Hussein's regime, and we've got to deal with the forces of Muqtada Al-Sadr in the south Secretary of State Colin Powell said in an interview April 9 with ABC's Peter Jennings.

"I have confidence that our military will bring this under control," Powell said.

"I'm confident we'll get Fallujah and Ramadi under control. In the case of Fallujah, the Marines are around the city now, on the outskirts of the city," he said "the Marines know how to deal with a situation like this and will go in, defeat the enemy, and retake Fallujah and Al-Ramadi".

Powell noted, "It's important for us to get the security situation under control, all of these places back under coalition and Iraqi control, and get back on our plan to build up the security forces, get on with reconstruction, get on with the political process and not lose sight of what we've accomplished over the past year and what our objective remains to be."

When asked about Coalition efforts to stop al-Sadr and his Mahdi militia Powell responded, "The plan is to deal with his militia, the Mahdi militia, and increasingly defeat them and squeeze him. And we hope that he comes to an understanding in the very near future that he is not going to stop the coalition or the Iraqi Governing Council from moving forward."

"He [al-Sadr] has been indicted by a very courageous Iraqi judge, indicted on charges of murder, and he will be brought to justice in due course," Powell said, "he is taking refuge in holy places, and he's surrounding himself with illegal militias that don't have any place in the future of Iraq.

"We are being sensitive right now to the major Shia festival that is taking place, but let there be no question that we believe that he should be brought to justice to answer for the charges against him," Secretary Powell said.

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
Office of the Spokesman
April 9, 2004

Interview
Secretary of State Colin L. Powell
On ABC News with Peter Jennings
April 9, 2004
Washington, D.C.

MR. JENNINGS: Mr. Secretary, how disturbed are you by what is happening in Iraq? One foreign policy specialist today called it "Lebanon on steroids." And Senator Kerry said today that the way the Administration is proceeding, it seemed determined to take Iraq in the direction of Vietnam.

SECRETARY POWELL: It's been a difficult week, no doubt. But I think as we end the week, the cities are increasingly coming back under coalition control where we had lost control earlier in the week. The enemy has suffered a number of casualties. So have we. It's been a tough week. But I think we know what we're about. We have got to defeat these Sunni remnants in the Sunni Triangle left over from Saddam Hussein's regime, and we've got to deal with the forces of Mr. Al-Sadr in the south. And we're going about that in a very systematic way, and I have confidence that our military will bring this under control.

We are worried about the kidnappings, of course; but we still believe that we are on track to go ahead with our political process of bringing an interim government into place by the end of June, and we have Ambassador Brahimi there from the United Nations who is working on this process.

So although it's been a tough week, it's a week that I think will show that we have the ability to deal with this kind of enemy, bring the situation under control, and keep going forward.

MR. JENNINGS: (Unrecorded.)

SECRETARY POWELL: I'm confident we'll get Fallujah and Ramadi under control. In the case of Fallujah, the Marines are around the city now, on the outskirts of the city. And they've declared a cessation of offensive operations for a while to allow humanitarian aid to come in and some discussions to take place to see if we cannot get these remnants of the old regime to lay down their arms and give it up so that we don't have to continue the fighting. But if it's necessary, the Marines know how to deal with a situation like this and will go in, defeat the enemy, and retake Fallujah and Al-Ramadi.

MR. JENNINGS: Is the insurgency stronger than you thought it was? A great many people on the ground think so.

SECRETARY POWELL: What we've seen over the last few days is stronger than anything we had seen previously, and I must say it was more than I had expected to see at this time. But nevertheless, I think our commanders have got a handle on it, they understand it and they're going to be able to deal with it.

MR. JENNINGS: Do you think what's happened is a good thing in some respects? The insurgents have stuck out their heads, and now you get a chance to kill them?

SECRETARY POWELL: Well, to some extent that is a good thing in that they've stuck their heads up and they're having their heads taken off. We will see in the days ahead what the effect of this week's activities have been. But it's important for us to get the security situation under control, all of these places back under coalition and Iraqi control, and get back on our plan to build up the security forces, get on with reconstruction, get on with the political process and not lose sight of what we've accomplished over the past year and what our objective remains to be. And that is, a despotic regime is gone, Saddam Hussein is in jail. The Iraqi people have a chance for a better life -- they want a better life. They have told us so. The polling tells us so. They don't want to see this kind of turmoil in their country. And I hope that they will increasingly make that view felt against these al-Sadr Shia criminals in the south, as well as the remnants in the Sunni Triangle.

MR. JENNINGS: What about Muqtada al-Sadr? People have been warning for months about this 30-year old rebel cleric. What's the plan now?

SECRETARY POWELL: Well, the plan is to deal with his militia, the Mahdi militia as they are called, and increasingly defeat them and squeeze him. And we hope that he comes to an understanding in the very near future that he is not going to stop the coalition or the Iraqi Governing Council from moving forward.

MR. JENNINGS: (Unrecorded.)

SECRETARY POWELL: I wouldn't say it's ridiculous. I'd say that the Governing Council has been at work. Ambassador Bremer has been meeting with them on a regular basis, and Ambassador Brahimi of the United Nations is in the city now working with members of the Governing Council.

And remember now, we haven't decided exactly, and nor have they decided what body we're going to be handing sovereignty to. It might be an expansion of the Governing Council or some other form that has yet to be finalized. That's what Ambassador Brahimi is working on with the Governing Council and with Ambassador Bremer.

MR. JENNINGS: If this kind of chaos existed on the eve of June 30, can you ever imagine handing power over to an Iraqi government of any form?

SECRETARY POWELL: Well, first of all, we don't expect this chaos to exist on June 30, and we're going to be sensitive to how the situation evolves over the next several months; but we're still moving ahead with the goal of turning over sovereignty on the 30th of June.

MR. JENNINGS: (Unrecorded.)

SECRETARY POWELL: We have a pretty good idea where he is. He has been indicted by a very courageous Iraqi judge, indicted on charges of murder, and he will be brought to justice in due course.

We are being sensitive right now to the major Shia festival that is taking place, but let there be no question that we believe that he should be brought to justice to answer for the charges against him.

MR. JENNINGS: (Unrecorded.)

SECRETARY POWELL: Because there are people in Iraq who do not want to see this form of justice applied to them, and Mr. Al-Sadr is one of these individuals. He is taking refuge in holy places, and he's surrounding himself with illegal militias that don't have any place in the future of Iraq.

MR. JENNINGS: (Unrecorded.)

SECRETARY POWELL: Thank you, Peter.

# # #