From Baghdad to a Job In Morgenthau's Office

Khalid Abood, a silver-haired Baghdad native who spent last week learning his way around the maze-like office of Manhattan's district attorney, can't quite account for his recent good fortune.

Earlier this month, District Attorney Robert Morgenthau hired him to be the new Arabic interpreter for the office. Mr. Abood, 60, arrived in the country in June with his wife and two of his daughters after having spent two years as an interpreter for American Marines and soldiers, mostly in Baghdad and near Fallujah. While on the job, he refused to cover his face to hide his identity. When he received a death threat at his home in November 2006, Mr. Abood fled with his family to Jordan.

Of the 2 million Iraqis who have taken refuge from the war in neighboring countries, about 900 have received visas in the last year to come to America.

Mr. Abood received his largely through the efforts of a Marine Corps captain, Zachary Iscol, whom Mr. Abood served under in 2004. Mr. Abood's departure to Jordan prompted Captain Iscol to travel to Capitol Hill and tell legislators of the plight of his former interpreter, the Washington Post reported earlier this month.

Asked about the turn his life has taken, Mr. Abood responded: "I am not some magnificent guy. So this is just like a dream."

"This country is doing me a great favor," he continued later. "I have to give my best service to the country and to the people.

Speaking in military lingo he has picked up, Mr. Abood added, "I am ready to execute any mission."

In addition to investigative work, his new job will involve interpreting for Arabic-speaking crime victims and suspects. Mr. Abood first came to Mr. Morgenthau's attention through Captain Iscol's father, a family friend of the district attorney's. The office's longtime Arabic-speaking investigator recently died.

In an interview, Mr. Morgenthau said he made the hire both because his office needed a translator and out of a moral obligation to assist the Iraqi interpreter and others who risked themselves to support American troops.

"It's very important that we don't abandon people who were loyal to the United States," he said.

Mr. Morgenthau said he was considering hiring one of Mr. Abood's daughters as well. Two of Mr. Abood's four daughters live with him, a third is married to an American serviceman, and a fourth studies in Poland, the first country to grant her refuge.

Despite enduring death threats and combat in Iraq, Mr. Abood still had his own fears about immigrating to America. In Jordan, he had heard worrisome stories about dangerous American cities, with purse-snatchings and kidnappings.

The sight of joggers near his home in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn — an indication that the streets were safe — calmed his fears.

"Even after midnight there are people running here," he said.