Broken Promises: America's Forgotten Iraqi Allies Face Death and a Long Road Home

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Broken Promises: America's Forgotten Iraqi Allies Face Death and a Long Road Home

Tuesday, 03 April 2012 09:47
By Mike Ludwig, Truthout | Report


A young Iraqi interpreter named Ali was riding with members of the United States Army 1st Armored Division on a 2003 midnight raid outside of Baghdad when the driver made a mistake in the darkness and their armored Bradley vehicle flipped into a canal. Ali was bleeding from the head, but maintained his composure and acted fast as water filled the vehicle. Loren Ferguson, a combat medic who was in the vehicle, was pinned down by debris under water until he felt Ali pull his head up. Ferguson looked up to see Ali pulling another interpreter's head above water. Ferguson remembers struggling to get a flashlight working as Ali moved debris out the way and opened compartment doors, allowing the driver and gunners in the vehicle's turret to escape. Thanks to Ali's cool head and quick thinking, everyone in the vehicle survived the crash.

"Ali came forward at a time when other Iraqis wouldn't even look at us," says Ferguson, remembering the early days of the war in Iraq. "He knew we were there to fight for freedom and not just take them over." Without interpreters like Ali, Ferguson says, coalition forces would not have accomplished anything. Allies like Ali were motivated "by a true want for freedom that Americans haven't felt in hundreds of years."

Ferguson considers Ali a hero and says he deserves a medal, or at least a place to live in the United States. The US government, however, considers him just another Iraqi refugee who was forced to flee Iraq after working through a contracting company for the Army. Ali is one of thousands of Iraqis currently wading through a sea of red tape, with the safety and opportunity of America on one shore, and vengeful insurgent and militia groups on the other.

Revealing Ali's full name could compromise his safety, but during the war, his American comrades affectionately nicknamed him "Tony Humvee." In an interview, Ali told Truthout he saw combat alongside American troops, helped interrogate insurgents and his skills helped save both American and Iraqi lives. Ferguson and his fellow American troops are back home in the US after serving in Iraq, but the war is not over for Ali, who says he is wanted by insurgent groups and militias for aiding the occupation. .............(more)

The complete piece is at: http://truth-out.org/news/item/8258-broken-promises-americas-forgotten-iraqi-allies-face-death-and-a-long-road-home

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