Interpreters upset at US military ban on wearing face masks

BAGHDAD - The US military has barred Iraqi interpreters working with American troops in Baghdad from wearing ski masks to disguise themselves, prompting some to resign and others to bare their faces though they fear it could get them killed.

Many interpreters employed by the US government and Western companies do everything they can to avoid being recognized on the job because extremists have tortured and killed Iraqis accused of collaborating with the enemy.

"The terps are the number one wanted here," said A.J., a 36-year-old military interpreter, using the shorthand for his profession. "More than the Americans. More than anyone."

The interpreters have come to symbolize the bravery of Iraqis who have aided Americans in Iraq. About 300 US military interpreters have been killed since 2003, said Kirk Johnson, a former official in Iraq with the US Agency for International Development who has fought to make it easier for interpreters and other Iraqis to come to the United States.

With security having improved in recent months, the US military has begun to close neighborhood outposts and take down a few blast walls, slowly disassembling the capital's wartime architecture to restore a sense of normalcy.

Many Iraqis, however, fear the relative calm won't last long. To them, ordering interpreters to work without masks suggests that some top US officials are taking an unrealistically rosy view of the security situation in Baghdad, which remains a dangerous city.

US military officials said they began to enforce the mask ban in September because security in Baghdad has improved dramatically. "We are a professional Army and professional units don't conceal their identity by wearing masks," Lieutenant Colonel Steve Stover, a US military spokesman, wrote in an e-mail. He expressed appreciation for the service and sacrifice of the interpreters but said those dissatisfied with the new policy "can seek alternative employment."

During years of active combat and widespread violence, interpreters have helped US soldiers make sense of Iraq's streets, politics, and history. These guides have been killed by snipers on foot patrols, blasted to shreds in roadside bombings and vilified by extremists as traitors. Interpreters have played a critical role in helping American soldiers promote reconciliation, counter the influence of extremists and ensure public safety.

"The decline in violence in the past year and a half cannot be disputed," said Johnson, who founded the List Project, an advocacy group for Iraqis who have worked for the American government.

Despite the improved security, a growing number of Iraqis have contacted Johnson's group in recent months, many expressing concern about the mask ban. "We have hundreds of Iraqis writing to us in desperation and fear, most of whom fled because their affiliation became known," Johnson said.

Under pressure from Congress to do more for Iraqi interpreters working for the US government, the State Department this year launched a streamlined immigrant visa program for them.

Some US soldiers said enforcing the policy makes them feel terrible. "It's a life and death issue for them," said Staff Sergeant Jeremy Ziegler, who works in Dora, a district in southern Baghdad. "I don't see anything wrong with them wearing a mask. Why risk the lives of those who work with us?"