Never underestimate your Mum.
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US mother's surprise Iraq visit
Iraq is just about the last place a US serviceman would expect to run into his mother
You might think that a war zone would be one of the few places where you would be guaranteed not to get a visit from your mother.
But this was not the case for one US soldier whose mother dropped by to see him at his military base in Iraq.
Susan Galleymore travelled more than 7,400 miles to be reunited with her son Nick after five months apart.
She was in Iraq as a guest of the Code Pink peace activists group, visiting Iraqi orphanages and hospitals.
Code Pink, whose self-proclaimed mission is to oust US President George W Bush from power, in other words "to give him his pink slip", have arranged Iraq visits for about a dozen parents in recent months.
Turning detective
Her son, a 26-year-old army ranger, had warned his mother not to come, insisting that it was too dangerous in Iraq.
It was as if he was wearing a homing device and I had to track him down
Susan Galleymore
He even went so far as to not revealing where he is based, but clearly he had underestimated Susan Galleymore's tenacity.
Using scraps of information from e-mails Nick had sent her, and tips from journalists working nearby the determined mother was able to track him down.
Seven days after her arrival in Iraq she turned up at the US military facility where she believed Nick was based.
Wearing a traditional hijab head scarf, which covered her face, she approached the US soldiers on guard with the words: "I'm coming up behind you, I mean you no harm."
Home comforts
The soldiers, who initially did not recognise her as an American were understandably perturbed and ordered her back to her car.
But after some talking and the production of her US passport Ms Galleymore managed to persuade the guards that she posed no threat and was eventually taken inside to see her son.
A stunned radio operator contacted him saying: "Hey, Nick. Your mom's here."
Last week's attacks in Falluja are a reminder that civilians are at risk
In a web log written about her experience Ms Galleymore said it was the first time she had seen Nick in uniform and that although she had been "expecting some annoyance" he was delighted to see her.
And just as you would expect from any caring mother she had even managed to bring him a few of his favourite treats, sweets and fruit drinks that she had carried halfway around the world for her son.
Instinct
Ms Galleymore was able to spend 90 minutes with Nick, who gave her a full tour of the base and accompanied her up a guard tower to enjoy the view.
And although Nick was stunned to see his mother in such strange surroundings, to Ms Galleymore she was simply acting on instinct.
"It was as if he was wearing a homing device and I had to track him down," she said.
US military officials have condemned the notion of parents visiting soldiers serving in Iraq because of the volatility of the current situation.
But Ms Galleymore said it was well worth the risk, not only to see her son, but to glimpse first hand the conditions that US soldiers in Iraq are operating under.
"What was most striking was how isolated the soldiers are over there," Ms Galleymore wrote in her web log. "They're not interacting with the Iraqi people that much."
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/3602733.stm
---------------------------------
US mother's surprise Iraq visit
Iraq is just about the last place a US serviceman would expect to run into his mother
You might think that a war zone would be one of the few places where you would be guaranteed not to get a visit from your mother.
But this was not the case for one US soldier whose mother dropped by to see him at his military base in Iraq.
Susan Galleymore travelled more than 7,400 miles to be reunited with her son Nick after five months apart.
She was in Iraq as a guest of the Code Pink peace activists group, visiting Iraqi orphanages and hospitals.
Code Pink, whose self-proclaimed mission is to oust US President George W Bush from power, in other words "to give him his pink slip", have arranged Iraq visits for about a dozen parents in recent months.
Turning detective
Her son, a 26-year-old army ranger, had warned his mother not to come, insisting that it was too dangerous in Iraq.
It was as if he was wearing a homing device and I had to track him down
Susan Galleymore
He even went so far as to not revealing where he is based, but clearly he had underestimated Susan Galleymore's tenacity.
Using scraps of information from e-mails Nick had sent her, and tips from journalists working nearby the determined mother was able to track him down.
Seven days after her arrival in Iraq she turned up at the US military facility where she believed Nick was based.
Wearing a traditional hijab head scarf, which covered her face, she approached the US soldiers on guard with the words: "I'm coming up behind you, I mean you no harm."
Home comforts
The soldiers, who initially did not recognise her as an American were understandably perturbed and ordered her back to her car.
But after some talking and the production of her US passport Ms Galleymore managed to persuade the guards that she posed no threat and was eventually taken inside to see her son.
A stunned radio operator contacted him saying: "Hey, Nick. Your mom's here."
Last week's attacks in Falluja are a reminder that civilians are at risk
In a web log written about her experience Ms Galleymore said it was the first time she had seen Nick in uniform and that although she had been "expecting some annoyance" he was delighted to see her.
And just as you would expect from any caring mother she had even managed to bring him a few of his favourite treats, sweets and fruit drinks that she had carried halfway around the world for her son.
Instinct
Ms Galleymore was able to spend 90 minutes with Nick, who gave her a full tour of the base and accompanied her up a guard tower to enjoy the view.
And although Nick was stunned to see his mother in such strange surroundings, to Ms Galleymore she was simply acting on instinct.
"It was as if he was wearing a homing device and I had to track him down," she said.
US military officials have condemned the notion of parents visiting soldiers serving in Iraq because of the volatility of the current situation.
But Ms Galleymore said it was well worth the risk, not only to see her son, but to glimpse first hand the conditions that US soldiers in Iraq are operating under.
"What was most striking was how isolated the soldiers are over there," Ms Galleymore wrote in her web log. "They're not interacting with the Iraqi people that much."
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/3602733.stm
