Here’s a letter from a Kurdish interpreter working with coalition forces in Baghdad, reprinted at the US Army Ranger Association Weblog. (Hat tip: Jake.)

Dear friend,

I’m sorry because I haven’t sent you any response. I was busy and I can’t leave the Coalition Forces’ compound like before. The terrorists are following me and they know that it is very difficult to leave the compound because they paid an open price for any piece of information leading to me or to my family. They pay this money either to make me work with them or to kill me, and I think they will kill me and never catch me so I’m trying to find a way to run from this place as soon as possible. At the same time I’m fighting them as I can. Sadiqi [my friend] I’m in a very difficult situation but I will continue until either they stop or I leave or I die, and they will never stop me. Because of that, there is a Syrian man following me to collect intelligence now who tried to hire me to make me work with them.

I can’t have my normal life in Iraq again, but I will never stop fighting. And I will never allow these people to come to take over the government and allow them to kill my family and my tribe again. But in the other face to this situation, I’m happy because now I think I paid back the debts to Coalition Forces, and I have revenged my Kurdish people and I enjoined the forming of democracy in this country. And if I stay alive, I will tell my children that I was with great people, fighting side by side to stop the terrorists. And I will tell them the nice and sad stories about that.

My friend I need talk to somebody who can understand me and I miss you really, brother, and I miss my friends in your unit and all the good people who I met during my work with US forces. Please say hey to every body you can see and I will try to send you another e mail when I come back.

Have a good life and may God bless America and all the good people in the world.

Your friend,
Abu Rahman