Azad "Mike" - Special Operations Interpreter to United States Marine

<p dir="ltr">In this episode of Combat Story, we sit down with Azad, known overseas as "Mike," whose life represents one of the most extraordinary and unlikely journeys to come out of the post-9/11 wars.</p> <p dir="ltr">Born Kurdish in Baghdad, Azad was still a child when the 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq began. His first exposure to Americans didn't come from movies, television, or Western culture — it came from U.S. soldiers operating in his hometown, at a time when alliances were fragile and the cost of being seen as a collaborator could be fatal.</p> <p dir="ltr">Driven by curiosity, survival, and a desire to understand the forces shaping his country, Azad taught himself English one word at a time. That determination led him to become a U.S. military interpreter, where he served shoulder-to-shoulder with some of America's most elite combat units, including the 101st Airborne Division, 82nd Airborne Division, Marine Special Operations, and multiple Navy SEAL teams — often in the most ...