Katyusha Rocket Fragments

During the Iraq War, CNN based its personnel in the Palestine Hotel in downtown Baghdad. At 7:15am on Nov. 21, 2003, the hotel was attacked by insurgents firing Katyusha rockets mounted on a donkey cart just down the road. The multiple-bank of rockets hit the 15th and 16th floors of the Palestine Hotel and the nearby Sheraton Hotel. Several people were injured, and some rooms were heavily damaged. The room next to mine was completely destroyed. As soon as the smoke cleared, I set up in the demolished room and did live shots for CNN the remainder of the day. After the incident, CNN’s security team collected pieces of the rockets to help determine the source of the attack and develop data about the incident. When they filed their report, I took possession of the missile fragments.

Katyusha rocket launchers were camouflaged in donkey carts and placed around the city. They were deployed against targets, including hotels in which diplomats, journalists and military officials were staying. These low tech weapons were hard to defend against.