Sadness, joy as NZ-born captive talks to his family

By AINSLEY THOMSON

The reunion phone call between Sergeant James Riley and his family was tinged with sadness when his father told him his sister had died during the three weeks he had spent as a prisoner of war in Iraq.

Sergeant Riley, 31, a New Zealand citizen who spent the first 10 years of his life in Auckland, rang his family hours after he and six other prisoners of war were released by Iraqi troops yesterday.

His father, New Zealander Athol Riley, who now lives in Pennsauken, New Jersey, had to tell his son that his 29-year-old sister, Mary, had died of a rare brain disease two weeks ago.

"He knew she was ill, and I didn't want to draw it out any longer."

Sergeant Riley yesterday told how he and his fellow prisoners listened to the bombing of Samarra as they waited to be rescued.

"At times we could hear the shell casings from the A-10s landing on the buildings we were in."

He said his unit had little chance when it was ambushed by Iraqi forces. "It wasn't a small ambush. It was a whole city.

"And we were getting shot from all directions as we were going down the road."

Mr Riley said it had been a tough few weeks for the family.

"It was kind of a one-two punch. I would imagine it would be pretty hard to get much worse."

Mr Riley said his son seemed well.

"He said his mind was going a million miles an hour and he couldn't think of what to say and what not to say."

One thing Sergeant Riley, who was paraded on Iraqi television alongside other prisoners of war, was able to express was that after three weeks of living on chicken and rice he never wanted to eat it again.

Mr Riley said there was no time during the five-minute phone conversation to hear details of the three weeks his son had spent as a prisoner of war.

He was just relieved to hear he had no injuries.

The seven freed soldiers are expected to stay in Kuwait for around 72 hours before being transferred to a military hospital near Washington DC.

Mr Riley said his son was due for leave, but first had to be debriefed and have psychological testing.

The family are now bracing themselves to deal with the intense media interest.

Mr Riley said 40 television stations had cameras outside their home.

"It's pretty overwhelming. But I try to look at one of the things he [Sergeant Riley] was fighting for - freedom of the press. So I have to accept it."

Sergeant Riley, who repairs tanks and Patriot missiles and has been in the US Army for 13 years, is the grandson of Joseph Roland, who was US Consul in Auckland between 1967 and 1972.

Mr Roland's daughter, Jane, married Athol Riley, a New Zealand electrical contractor. The Rileys moved to New Jersey in 1979.

Sergeant Riley is a former Ellerslie Primary School pupil. His paternal grandparents live in Howick.

Mr Riley said he rang them in the middle of the night to tell them the good news.

Herald Feature: Iraq war