The State Department has denied a visa to a heroic Iraqi translator–reportedly because he once stole a car belonging to Saddam Hussein’s son, Uday, as part of an effort to overthrow the regime. But according to experts in visa policy, the State Department’s refusal to grant the visa is puzzling since Jasim’s actions were “purely political,” and thus do not qualify as “crimes of moral turpitude.”

Some of Jasim’s supporters believe the State Department has ulterior motives for denying the visa. “When all the other agencies, including DHS, give their stamp of approval, I have a hard time believing that there is a generous explanation for this decision,” says Maj. Leslie Parks, who served in Iraq coordinating outreach to local Iraqi civilian and government officials.

Parks, who worked with Jasim and estimates that the translator has gone on 1,300 combat patrols, believes the State Department may be singling out Jasim for being a “nuisance.”

“Jasim’s been high-profile for a while, starting with being featured on 60 Minutes in early 2007 (as ‘Timmy,’ his previous cover name) about translators who weren’t getting the visas, despite their lives being threatened,” Parks said.

“He’s also been a whistleblower on a few occasions, exposing potentially embarrassing information regarding the Embassy and other U.S. and Iraqi government agencies operating in the Green Zone.”

Starting a few months ago, Jasim organized his fellow translators to oppose a provision negotiated by the State Department to hand over the names and personal information of all translators to the Iraqi government. Translators feared that their lives would be at risk if their identities were learned by Iraqis who view them as “traitors.”

Those who have worked with Jasim are shocked that his visa was denied, citing numerous occasions that Jasim risked his own life to save wounded U.S. soldiers. U.S. military officials say they are particularly worried about the safety of Jasim, his wife, and infant son once U.S. forces begin withdrawing from Iraq next year. Several translators and/or their families have already faced torture and murder. But the State Department says Jasim must wait three years before applying for a waiver on the visa rejection. That’s precious time Jasim and his family may not have.