I was an interpreter with U.S. army as well, 617th MP Co. I also worked as a contractor for BearingPoint (bought by Deloitte) on an INL funded project to build a centralized database for the Iraqi Justice System (lookup IJIP - Iraqi justice integration project). I too wanted to help rebuild the country but was labeled as a traitor. I literally dodged death twice and received multiple direct and indirect death threats during the time I worked with American forces and companies. I was lucky enough to be granted a refugee status in 2008. I had multiple recommendations from the people I worked with including one from the U.S. embassy in Baghdad that helped push my case forward a lot faster. Other interpreters weren't so lucky, many have died and many are still stuck waiting for their refugee status including, unfortunately, my best friend.
It is shocking that people who put their lives on the line to serve [US|UK|whomever] weren't granted more than, at best, refugee status given that they were more than likely to be killed once they were no longer 'required'.<p>Interestingly the Soviets tended to take their own home-trained interpreters, partly to prevent them being turned by the local population. One of the most famous from the Afghan war was Vladimir Girigoryev who went on to establish ArtOfWar.ru for veterans of that conflict.<p>The USA and UK do have an extensive language-training school at Chicksands in England but the graudates of that school tend to serve in the ISAR trades rather than being embedded with combat units.