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ABERDEEN PROVING GROUND, Md. – When Iraqi interpreter Ali S. Salman was stopped at a militia checkpoint on his way home to Al-Mansour in Baghdad from the Green Zone, he knew trouble awaited him.
On that fateful day in November 2008, Salman had to tread carefully.
Salman told the Iraqi militia members that he was a student at the University of Technology when they questioned him about his work.
“They accused me of working with U.S. forces, pulled me from my car, and beat me before dragging me to an abandoned house nearby,” said Salman. “Inside the house, I saw bloodstains on the floor, and the men threatened to kill me, calling me a ‘sheep’ for collaborating with Americans.”
While the militia members planned their next move, Salman used a small Nokia phone issued to him by U.S. forces, which he had hidden in his sock. He called his brother Zack for help.
“He was still working in the Green Zone with another unit. Through tears, he scolded me for taking that route but quickly informed his major about the situation,” said Salman. “I managed to give Zack the street name and house number before hanging up.”
Less than 10 minutes later, Salman heard a loud crash — the sound of a Humvee breaking through the front door.
“A noncommissioned officer from the 1st Cavalry Division opened the door where I was being held and asked, ‘Are you Ali?’ I said yes. He responded, ‘Let’s go.’ When I asked who they were and what had happened to the militia outside, he simply replied, ‘Don’t know and don’t care. We got a call from higher saying one of ours was captured.’”
The 1st Cavalry Division unit was on patrol nearby when they received the call.
Salman was taken back to the Green Zone where he remained for 10 days and underwent interviews with the U.S. State Department and other agencies. At the end of the process, he was issued a green card and sent to America.
He arrived at Baltimore-Washington International Airport on November 18, 2008.
Salman’s journey from Iraq to the United States to the U.S. Army began by chance.
“My first experience working with the U.S. Army in Iraq happened by coincidence,” he said. “At the time, I was working for an Iraqi contractor hired to clean carpets for the establishment of the Green Zone. One day, a major tasked the contractor with a job he failed to complete. I stepped in to explain the situation, which led the major to get to know me. Soon after, she asked me to serve as hir interpreter, and that became my role with the U.S. forces.”
Salman became a U.S. citizen within two years of arriving in the United States.
He had help from a former Air Force major that he met while serving in Iraq who later became an immigration lawyer after leaving the service.
“I ran into her in Virginia, and she offered to assist me with the paperwork,” he said.
Salman attended basic training at Fort Moore, Georgia, before commissioning through Officer Candidate School. Salman earned his bachelor’s degree in applied physics engineering from the University of Baghdad and Texas A&M University.
Salman’s older brother and sister-in-law lived in the U.S. and his older brother supported his decision to join the military.
“When I was accepted to attend Officer Candidate School (OCS), we celebrated with a party at his house, inviting neighbors and even the local kickball team,” said Salman.
Today, Capt. Ali S. Salman commands the Headquarters and Headquarters Company for the Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland-headquartered 20th Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear, Explosives (CBRNE) Command, the U.S. Department of Defense’s premier multifunctional and deployable CBRNE formation.
Soldiers and Army civilians from the 20th CBRNE Command deploy from 19 bases in 16 states to confront and defeat the world’s most dangerous hazards in support of joint, interagency and multinational operations.
During his eight years in the U.S. Army, Salman has served as a U.S. Army intelligence officer and has served in South Korea, South America, and Germany. He calls Silver Spring, Maryland, home.
Salman credits the U.S. Army with not only saving his life but also giving him a new path forward to a brighter future. He plans to become a U.S. Army Foreign Area Officer and hopes to one day return to the Middle East as an American ambassador.
“The main reason I joined the Army is that the Army saved my life when I was in Iraq. I felt I owed a profound debt to this nation for what it had given me,” said Salman. “The best part of serving in the Army is the bond I share with my brothers and sisters in uniform. I lost my family when I was 11 years old, but the Army gave me a bigger family — one I eat, laugh, and fight alongside every day.”
| Date Taken: | 12.19.2024 |
| Date Posted: | 12.19.2024 11:36 |
| Story ID: | 487942 |
| Location: | ABERDEEN PROVING GROUND, MARYLAND, US |
| Hometown: | SILVER SPRING, MARYLAND, US |
| Web Views: | 267 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
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