Why I Serve-PFC Friel, USMC

By Pfc. Lucian Friel, USMC
Special to American Forces Press Service

MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C., Nov. 10, 2004 --
"Because I am Middle
Eastern and speak the language, it will be easy for me to
gain the Iraqi
peoples' trust," Marine Lance Cpl. Ahmad M. Ibrahim said.

The 26-year-old Marine reads, writes and speaks Arabic. He
is being deployed to
Iraq with the 2nd Marine Division early next year because
of his language
ability, one desperately needed by his unit.

Born in Kuwait and raised in Syria, Ibrahim was surrounded
by violence for most
of his childhood. He said this has helped prepare him for
dealing with a
violent society. "I was living in fear for most of my life.
You learn to ignore
the chaos, but in a war environment you become very
fearful," Ibrahim
explained.

In 1990, Ibrahim and his family were on vacation on the
East Coast of the
United States when the Gulf War broke out. "My parents
decided it was best for
us to stay in the U.S.," he said. "My first legal
citizenship was here in
America, because I was never a legal citizen in Kuwait and
Syria."

Ibrahim graduated from Philadelphia's George Washington
High School in 1995 and
went on to graduate from Temple University. Being a college
graduate, he had
the opportunity to become an officer in the military but
chose a different
path.

"I went enlisted because I wanted that real experience," he
said. Ibrahim
enlisted with an Army Reserve unit in Newtown Square, Pa.,
but "wanted to
experience something a little more difficult."

He joined the Marine Corps in late 2003, after serving a
year and a half in the
Army Reserve. During boot camp, Ibrahim was tested on his
Arabic writing and
speaking skills. He scored high and became a certified
interpreter.

He said he believes his skills will be useful for his unit
in Iraq. "If we're
on patrol and there are ambush signs warning us to keep out
of an area, I can
inform my fellow Marines and help them communicate with
locals if they need
to," he said with his slight Middle Eastern accent.

Ibrahim said he is excited about experiencing Iraqi
culture. "I don't want to
be behind a desk five miles away from what is going on," he
said. "I need to be
right there with my fellow Marines communicating directly
with the Iraqi
people."

The administrative clerk said he hopes to do all three of
his Marine Corps jobs
in Iraq. "I want to do my normal job with admin, but at the
same time I know
I'll be interpreting," he explained. "And I want to be a
rifleman with the
infantry grunts."

Ibrahim said he wanted to be a Marine because he enjoys
military life. In Iraq,
he will be able to help Marines and Iraqis communicate with
each other, making
it easier for Marines to help Iraq stand on its own two
feet.

"I know I can contribute to the war effort," Ibrahim said.
"And I am grateful
for my abilities that have enabled me to be a part of this
experience."