Iraq War Vet Talks About The Raid That Landed Him On The New York Times Front Page MTV Music Television

Aug AM EDT Iraq War Vet Talks About The Raid That Landed Him On The New York Times Front Page This is something I ll be able to show my grandchildren and talk to them about Lorenzo Zarate says. By Michelle Rabinowitz Views During the early days of the war in Iraq year old Lorenzo Zarate helped detain one of Saddam Hussein s former security guards and found millions of U.S. dollars in the home of the former dictator s daughter. But it was a more routine raid that landed the former Army infantryman on the cover of The New York Times. There had been a lot of roadside bombs going off around us lately and an informant told us who the guy was and where he lived he said. If Zarate s name looks familiar it s because the vet had a chance to meet Kanye West during the MTV News special Choose or Lose Kanye West Present Homecoming. Watch their surprise meeting here . So on the night of December Zarate and some other members of the Army s th Infantry Division raided an unassuming house i! n Tikrit Saddam Hussein s hometown. We busted down the door and at first we didn t find anything he said. But then we got out the metal detectors and started searching the house and the yard. That s where we found it all. I d say about pounds of explosives. That night Zarate s unit seized a huge arsenal of weapons and arrested three men who were believed to be leaders of an insurgent cell according to The Associated Press. It was his job to guard one of the men while the rest of the unit finished up the search. In the back of my mind I m thinking This guy is responsible for killing friends of mine he said. My buddies are not here and this guy is here. What should I do with that I was ready to shoot him. But he didn t. I had a lot of anger in my heart Zarate said. I could ve gone to jail if I shot him but the way my mind was at that time I could ve been likely to shoot him and that s what I wanted to do. While Zarate was making that split second life or death decision an AP ! photographer named Efrem Lukatsky stepped out of the darkness and started taking his own shots. He s lucky Zarate said of the insurgent. Because I thought we were alone and once I realized we were not alone no more with all the cameras clicking around me I knew I couldn t do it. That may seem harsh but according to Zarate the constant bloodshed around him and the loss of friends to roadside bombs and attacks turned him into a different person. I was a monster he said. The morning after the raid he became a bit of a celebrity among his unit in Iraq. Word spread that he was the unnamed soldier whose photo ended up on the cover of the Times. When I first saw this paper I didn t even know it was me he said. One of my friends ran up to me and said You re in the paper. So I checked it out and I noticed this scope and these glasses my uncle bought me. That s when he freaked out about his family back home. For months Zarate had been assuring his family that he was out of harm s way. He had never told them about the house raids roadside bombs or firefi! ghts. They were obviously worried but Zarate assured them that just getting this one guy off the streets would make their jobs a lot safer. Zarate is back home in Austin Texas now. He suffers from post traumatic stress disorder and can t work until his doctors are sure his treatment is working. Talking about the night that photograph was taken has helped him deal with what he witnessed he said. This is something I ll be able to show my grandchildren and talk to them about he said. He ll have plenty of time to prepare for that day his first child is due at the end of the year. But hopefully he ll have a chance to talk to his brother about it sooner than that He ships off to Iraq in September. Head to Think.MTV.com to find a community where you your friends and your favorite celebrities can get informed get heard and take action on the issues that matter to you most. Lorenzo Zarate in Tikrit Iraq in December Photo Efrem Lukatsky Related Videos Posted hr ago Young Veterans Sto! ries Send Us Feedback MTV Contests Sweepstakes MTV Shop Rhapsody.com MTV mtvU MTV Tr s Directory of MTV Sites MTV Radio MTV Style MTV Jobs Podcasts RSS MTV Logo Art Newsletters Site Map Terms of Use Privacy Policy Your CA Privacy Rights Copyright Compliance Policy User Content Submission Agreement Advertising Opportunities Community FAQ Social Project Privacy Policy Social Project Terms of Use c MTV Networks. c and TM MTV Networks. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. E commerce on this website is brought to you by MTVN Direct Inc. 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