European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - July 26, 1991, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Friday july 26, 1991 the stars and stripes iraqi born . Soldier heeded Call arabic language skill filled key need in War by Chuck Roberts staff writer Erlenheim Germany a when sgt. Emad Al Baa was told to report to his commanders office the night before thanksgiving he knew his past was catching up with him. To his friends and co workers at the 29th Supply and service co at Wiesbaden a Germany he was the sergeant in charge of training who looked italian or maybe Spanish. But the army knew that Baa was an iraqi native a we de of Middle. Eastern languages and culture was needed following the iraqi invasion of Kuwait. A but i had another reason then to fight the War a said the 30-year-old Baa. After fleeing to Iran in 1966, his family. Eventually settled in Kuwait. His parents and sister were trapped there during the War. After the cease fire Baa found his family safely together at his e Sisters Home. His father Al Baj had been beaten by iraqi soldiers but otherwise his family escaped the War unscathed except for lacking food. Before his tearful family reunion Baa a a pre thanksgiving Call had taken him to the United states saudi Arabia Iraq Kuwait and Back to the United a states before his May 5 return to Germany where he saw his youngest son for the first time. Upon receiving his orders in november Baa had joined 13 other handpicked soldiers at . Military intelligence schools. After the group arrived in saudi Arabia in january Baa was assigned to the 207th military intelligence brigade. His arabic background was immediately put to use As he patrolled campsites to make sure the area was free of terrorists. If he met a kuwaiti while on patrol Baa said he would speak with a i kuwaiti Dia act so that the person would think of him As a a Home boy and speak freely. He used the same technique with arabs from. I had another reason then to fight the War a sgt. Emad Al Baa different regions. Baa said there Are More than 20 dialects in the arabic language which he said is considered the second most difficult language to learn after chinese. Even arabs have difficulty understanding dialects of different regions Baa said. His Job also was to smooth relations with the local arabs which had a personal Benefit for Baa. He said he never ate any meals ready to eat during his month of counterintelligence because the local natives shared their food with Baa and his colleagues. As he gained their Trust the arabs showed their Friendship toward Baa through customs such As holding his hand while walking or exchanging kisses on the top of the nose which Baa said Drew a few interested looks from his fellow soldiers. When the ground War began Baa was assigned to a site where prisoners were taken for an initial interrogation before being sent to one of the two Camps operated by the . Joint interrogation forces. For three Days the three hours of sleep he managed to grab each Day while interrogating thousands of prisoners came while standing up or leaning against a vehicle. Baa said he tried to make the prisoners feel comfortable around him. If a prisoner was sad Baa would act sad. Although he detests cigarettes Baa became a smoker to blend in better with the iraqi soldiers who were heavy smokers. Baa said he portrayed himself As an american Soldier who spoke arabic. But when he suspected that a prisoner was lying he would suddenly Tell them he was an iraqi and speak to them in their own dialect. A right then he gets scared and he starts giving me information right away a Baa said. He identified one Soldier assigned to an iraqi execution squad by the dark outline remaining after the British military clears its soldiers of blame in Friendly fire deaths from staff and wire reports London a the British military said wednesday that its inquiry into the Gulf War deaths of nine British soldiers attacked by . Warplanes has cleared the British personnel of any blame. A it really is now up to the americans As to what they do. They have now got a copy of this report a armed forces minister Archie Hamilton told Independent television news. On feb. 26, in the final Days of the War two american a-10 thunderbolts the army a tank killers fired missiles at two British Warrior armoured vehicles in Southern Iraq. Nine soldiers were killed and 11 were wounded. In All Britain lost 24 dead in the War. Hamilton said the planes target was More than 13 Miles to the East. He said a Board of inquiry had been unable to determine Why the . Pilots had misidentified the British armoured vehicles. The pilots said they attacked on the basis of information passed to them by . Planes on an earlier bombing run and reacted to their a positive identification of the targets As enemy vehicles Hamilton said in a report to parliament. Asked to comment on the British report at a Pentagon news briefing thursday spokesman Pete Williams said a obviously we re very concerned. All Friendly fire incidents Are a concern to us and our main concern has to be to find ways to try to prevent  Hamilton said the Lead plane made two passes a at 15,000 feet and at 8,000 feet a but the Pilot saw no Friendly markings through his binoculars and each aircraft fired one missile. The attacked vehicles carried fluorescent air recognition panels. A the Board could not make any finding As to whether the pilots should have seen the identification panels at their operating height a Hamilton said. The Board concluded that no blame or responsibility for the incident could be attributed to 3-Rrf 3rd battalion Royal regiment of Fusiliers a Williams said the Pentagon has undertaken no formal investigation of its own on that incident. A a we re not in a position to be Able to say a Well Here s the British investigation Here a our investigation a and then hold them up to see How they match a Williams said. The British newspaper the Independent reported thursday that a a . Congressman has put Forward a Bill to try to have the families granted payments of at least 90,000 pounds $155,700similar to those the family of a . Service member who died in the Gulf would receive under the . Compulsory pension  a contributing to this report were staff writers Amy Geiszler Jones in England and Chuck Vinch in Washington . Army releases names of 3 who died in explosion Washington apr the army on thursday identified three american soldiers killed earlier this week in an explosion of ammunition near a military Camp at Doha 12 Miles West of Kuwait City. The soldiers on tuesday were Clearing ammunition remaining from a fire and explosion that occurred at Doha on july 11 when some of the ordnance detonated. The three were identified As pfc. Joshua j. Fleming 19, from Kent Wash., of the 58th combat engr co of the 11th army Cav regt in Germany staff sgt. Ricky l. Bunch 29, an ordnance disposal specialist from Corbin by. And sgt. 1st class Donald t. Murphy jr., 34, an ordnance disposal specialist. The army said it had no record of Murphy a Home town. Triangular military Patch worn by those soldiers had been removed. When Baa asked him what his Job was the prisoner said he was an infantry Soldier. But Baa tricked the Soldier into telling the truth by telling him that another Soldier already had revealed everything about him. _ Baa s role in the War completed a Long round trip to the area of his birth and one filled with tension and fear. When his father was jailed for his political activities in 1965, Baa and his Mother brother and sister crossed the Shatt Al Arab River and entered Iran during the night. His father had been sentenced to die but was saved when an army major helped him escape. Baa said his childhood in Iraq was marked by fighting Between the baath party and the communists for control of the country. A they sleep with a sword under their Pillow was the phrase people lived by then Baa said. His father rejoined the family in Iran and they later moved to Kuwait in 1966 where Baa graduated from High so Hoof he started College at Idaho state University in 1980. During a visit with his family in 1982, Baa took his iraqi passport to the iraqi embassy in Kuwait for renewal. When he went Back the next Day to pick it up he was told it had been lost. A Baa said the a lost passport was a ploy to Force him to return to Iraq and be drafted As a Soldier for the War with i ran. To escape he asked the iraqi embassy to Issue him a temporary passport to Iraq. With this passport which was stamped As valid to Iraq and his student visa he bought a ticket to the United states at Kuwait International Airport. When Baa approached the customs counter he turned the passport to a Blank Page before giving it to the customs official. Luckily the agent was preoccupied and. Stamped his passport for departure to the United states. When his plane landed in new York Baa was so grateful to be accepted somewhere that he decided to become a . Citizen and join the military. A i just Felt that i am in the states now Quot he said. Quot i want to be an  critical of . Readiness in Gulf will retire fort Lewis Wash. Apr an army commander who several weeks before the Allied offensive against Iraq contended that american troops were not ready for Battle says he wants to retire. It. Gen. Calvin Waller said he will ask president Bush for permission to retire sept. 30. A a it a time to move on a Waller commander of fort Lewis said in a statement tuesday. Waller 53, was Deputy commander of . Forces in the persian Gulf during operation desert shield. Waller had said in december that . Forces would not ready to go to War on Jan. 15, the United nations deadline for iraqis withdrawal from Kuwait. He added that he would advise the president against attacking the iraqi forces until enough forces were in the Gulf. At the time the statement appeared to undercut Bush a strategy of steadily increasing pressure on iraqis president Saddam Hussein. Allied forces began bombing Iraq and Kuwait shortly after the deadline and Iraq surrendered a Little More than a month later following a Short ground War. Waller a 32-year Veteran who served in Vietnam and Korea is one of the highest ranking Blacks in the army. He assumed command of f�7 Lewis in August 1989. He was deployed in saudi Arabia from november through March. Some soldiers at fort Lewis expressed Surprise at Waller a announcement. A for me being a Young Black officer he was an inspiration a it. Richard Swoope said. A the was a role Model for All