By George P. Hassett

An Iraq war veteran placed retroactively at the top of a civil service hiring list for the city’s fire department may have been passed over for the last time at last Thursday’s aldermen meeting.

Sean O’Brien won a civil service decision that placed him at the top of the list to be hired as a Somerville firefighter. Six candidates were approved to join the city’s reserve firefighter force over O’Brien at the meeting.

Alderman-at-Large Bill White and Ward Six Alderman Rebekah Gewirtz said the appointments should not be made until it is clear why O’Brien has been bypassed.

“He did the right thing, he fought for this country,” White said. “He has been bypassed but we don’t know the reasons he’s been bypassed…It’s the holidays and we’re taking this guy’s dream away from him and it’s really bothering me.”

Gewirtz said another round of hiring in the department while skipping O’Brien “is tantamount to punishment for speaking up.”

“I’m very concerned that politics is at play in the hiring process,” she said.

White asked for an executive session meeting to discuss the reasons O’Brien was not hired but his motion did not pass.