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Cpl. Ali J. Mohammed, a supply Marine from Headquarters and
Service Company, 3rd Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment, Special Purpose
Marine Air-Ground Task Force-Crisis Response-Central Command, is
serving as a translator with an SPMAGTF Advise and Assist team that
supports Iraqi forces as they fight to oust ISIL from their country.
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December 22, 2016 - Cpl. Ali J. Mohammed, a Baghdad, Iraq native and
a supply Marine with 3rd Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment, Special
Purpose Marine Air-Ground Task Force-Crisis Response-Central
Command, stands in front of the painting an Iraqi flag while in
Northern Iraq. Mohammed, fluent in Arabic, has strengthened the
partnership between SPMAGTF Marines and Iraqi military members by
translating pertinent information to support their operations.
SPMAGTF Marines enable Combined Joint Task Force-Operation Inherent
Resolve with security forces, strikes, and advise and assist teams,
all of which support the Iraqis in their efforts to defeat ISIL. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Kyle McNan)
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Mohammed was born and raised in Baghdad, Iraq, until the
age of 16. When most teenagers are busy preparing for prom
or heading to cheer on their high school for Friday night
football, Mohammed and his family were forced to leave the
only home they knew. After his family received numerous
threats from extremists for their role in supporting the
U.S., Mohammed and his family chose to move to the United
States.
“I had to face a lot of challenges coming to
America,” said Mohammed. “Trying to learn English and
working to help support my family while going to high school
was difficult.” Despite the challenges Mohammed faced, he
graduated from high school less than five years after coming
to the United States.
On Nov. 4, 2014, Mohammed made
a life changing decision, one which would bring him back to
Iraq. On that mild fall day, he raised his right hand and
swore his oath of enlistment into the United States Marine
Corps. His story is like many who take that oath, one that
includes a desire to serve his country while being part of
something larger than oneself.
When recalling
childhood memories from Iraq, he spoke about his sister who
used to translate for U.S. Marines.
“Seeing her work
so closely with these Americans, how much she trusted them
and seeing how much they wanted to help us made me idealize
them as a child,” Mohammed said. “It is part of the reason I
decided to join the Marine Corps.”
Mohammed's current
role highlights the partnership between SPMAGTF Marines and
the Department of Defense with Iraqi military members by
translating pertinent information to support their
operations.
“To be able to read, write and speak
Arabic is normal to him, and for him to be a U.S. Marine and
understand how we operate is just phenomenal,” said Maj.
Ryan Hunt, the team leader for the SPMAGTF Advise and Assist
team operating in Northern Iraq. “He's just a pleasure to
work with and is a huge asset to this team. He's had such a
positive attitude and is very mature; sometimes I forget
he's only 23 years old.”
Mohammed speaks a unique
dialect of Arabic and is no stranger to serving as a
translator while forward deployed.
“My first
deployment was the most difficult, but the most rewarding,”
said Mohammed. “There was an Army hospital in [Iraq] that
was full of Iraqi causalities from attacks by extremist
groups in the area. I did everything I could to help as many
people as possible. I would sit there with the patient and
they would try the best they could to tell me where they
were hurt or what was wrong. It was an experience I will
never forget.”
“America is my home, but Iraq is my
homeland,” said Mohammed. “My biggest motivation right now
is to help drive these extremist groups out of my home land,
and being able to do that as a United States Marine is the
most rewarding thing I could have asked for.”
Mohammed's next goal in the Marine Corps is to utilize his
skillset while serving with the United States Marine Corps
Forces Special Operations Command. He strives to apply his
ability to speak, read and write Arabic to MARSOC's core
capabilities of direct action, special reconnaissance and
foreign internal defense.
By U.S. Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Kyle McNan
Provided
through DVIDS
Copyright 2017
The U.S. Marines
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