Translators' fears disrupt vital lines of communication
By C. Mark Brinkley, Army Times
MOSUL, Iraq — All Jeff Sirwan has to do is quit talking and the people he loves might stop dying.
As a translator for coalition forces in Iraq, the 25-year-old Kurdish interpreter has negotiated deals for the military, questioned witnesses and handled unruly mobs. In the process, he says, his dedication to the cause of a free Iraq has resulted in at least two murders.
"Just because I am an interpreter, they killed two of my cousins," says Sirwan, of Sulaimaniyah, preparing to head out for another patrol with coalition forces. "Killed them and burned down their homes."
In recent weeks, insurgents have taken their fight to this city of 1.7 million people in Iraq's mostly quiet north. Last month, insurgents launched coordinated attacks on the city's police stations and drove most officers away before U.S. forces could re-establish control. Since then, insurgents have waged a terror campaign, assassinating police or individuals suspected of working with the coalition.
Bodies turn up every day now in Mosul. Most of them have been shot in the head and left on public display. About 100 bodies have been discovered in the past month. Most are still unidentified.
The message is clear: Stay away from Americans and the interim Iraqi government. The message has gotten through to interpreters.
"We have very few left," says Maj. Brian Kenna, 42, an Army civil-affairs team chief from Spokane, Wash., whose job demands regular interaction with local officials and the public. "The terror campaign has been very effective. It makes work a lot more difficult. We're able to get some things done, but in Mosul itself, it's hard to accomplish anything because of the security situation."
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http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/iraq/2004-12-07-mosul-usat_x.htm
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