Translating in Iraq: A Deadly Career Option for the Locals.

Following the U.S Forces’ initial invasion of Baghdad and the toppling of the Saddam regime in early May 2003, many Iraqis with English language training eagerly offered their services as translators and interpreters for American troops. Many were devoted patriots who supported the American cause 150% and wanted desperately to see their country succeed under a democratic government, others were primarily motivated by financial reasons and volunteered because the Americans were paying more than any Iraqi employer could offer them at the time; but all were ultimately working towards the same goal – a free and peaceful Iraq.

While working with the military, translators perform various relatively safe tasks such as assisting in interrogations of detainees at fortified locations or translating documents and other sheltered desk jobs, but they also conduct raids and participate in tactical missions, right alongside Soldiers and Marines on a daily basis. While performing these duties they are noticed and observed by the civilian locale of the areas in which they are operating. Although the translators are all given an alias by which every American they work with refers to them in order to safeguard their identities, Iraqis never forget a face. The residents who are left with a bitter taste in their mouths following an American raid that has just been conducted on their private home remember one person in particular – the translator. His image is engraved on their memories because he is an Iraqi; even if the civilians don’t specifically oppose the Americans, they still see the translator as a fellow Iraqi who has turned his back on his own people to support a foreign invader.

Before they know it, a translator has made hundreds of silent enemies across the country. This scorn and unpopularity is not only emotionally destructive but eventually becomes a life threatening issue. A random photo snapped by a local capturing a translator out on patrol or searching a home, circulated along with community gossip and chatter, snowballs out of control and suddenly a translator finds him/herself more popular than Paris Hilton at a strip club. This fame is initially met with discomforting yet relatively harmless scorn from the Iraqi population but is eventually noticed by a more destructive fan – the insurgency or any of the other hundreds of independent groups operating throughout Iraq with anti-American sentiments.

That once insignificant snapshot of a translator is now mass produced and distributed in poster size throughout an entire area where it is displayed in various locations including shop windows and mosques. The translator who earns between $600 and $800 a month as an army interpreter is now worth $10,000 to anyone who can provide accurate information regarding his whereabouts. The translator can no longer return home for fear of leading his enemies to his family and putting their lives in danger. His own life is threatened at every turn and the only protection the Americans can offer is a cot inside one of their bases or camps. In order to survive, the translator becomes a prisoner within the razor wires of an American base and ultimately an indentured servant because he has to earn his keep – there are no free rides from the U.S. military.

I had the opportunity to sit and talk with Ahmed*, a translator who worked for the U.S. Army and Marines for two years and now lives the life of a wanted fugitive. Ahmed is 25 years old and holds a Bachelor’s degree in English from Baghdad University’s College of Languages. He volunteered his services as a translator in April of 2003, shortly after the end of major military operations in Baghdad. He comes from a relatively wealthy family so he did not need the job for the money, he did it based on principle. He managed to keep a low profile for several months and was careful not to mention his profession while conversing with friends and family. Unfortunately, Ahmed’s clandestine occupation was compromised by the greed of a fellow translator. A U.S. citizen, born and raised in Palestine, worked at the main gate of the base in which Ahmed was assigned and had the duty of checking and verifying the Identifications of all local translators who worked on the base. He photocopied the badges and personal IDs of ten translators, including Ahmed, and sold them to a member of the insurgency.


Ahmed on assignment in Western Iraq

Ahmed’s photo was posted in several mosques around Ramadi and other areas west of Baghdad on large posters entitled, “WANTED TRAITOR”. Ahmed, along with nine other translators whose names and photos were posted alongside his, became an overnight sensation. He knew he was no longer safe outside the base and would have to forgo seeing his family for several months in the hope that time would eradicate his celebrity status and he could simply fall back into the shadows of obscurity. Ahmed stuck close to the Americans for the next 18 months and only left the secured confines of the bases and camps to provide support to military missions and maneuvers. He spoke with his family via internet and telephone but did not dare to visit them in person.

After nearly two years of non-stop action, fighting, raids, missions and endless translating of documents, Ahmed had finally had enough and decided to quit his job as a translator for the American forces. Much to Ahmed’s dismay, his popularity amongst the malicious elements of Iraq’s society had not dwindled but grown in recognition. The insurgents had done their homework and knew Ahmed’s home address and even the number to his personal cell phone. He received written death threats wrapped in hand grenades on his door step and random phone threats.

Ahmed appealed to his former supervisors, American military officers whom he worked for and had developed close friendships, for help but was told their was nothing more they could do to protect him than hire him back as a translator and allow him to return to live on a base. Ahmed declined this offer and continued to live as a hunted animal constantly looking over his shoulder. He lost many friends that he’s known since childhood because they are terrified to be seen with him and know they may be murdered for associating with him.

Ahmed (right) assisting a Marine Officer near Fallujah, Iraq

“I chose to work for the Americans and help them out because I believed in what they were doing,” Ahmed explained. “I felt that they were doing what is right for Iraq and that they appreciate the help people give them. But now I know that they only used me and really don’t care if I live or die. I really wish I never worked with them, it ruined my life.”

Ahmed has successfully escaped several assassination attempts, including gunmen armed with AK-47s opening fire on him while driving in his car and a grenade thrown into the front of his house from a passing vehicle. The insurgency and other satellite groups with anti-American sentiments have already succeeded in killing the nine other translators who’s IDs the Palestinian-American sold to the insurgency, Ahmed is the only survivor and he knows that if he does not escape from the Middle East, it is only a matter of time before his luck will run out.

*Names have been changed as a security precaution