British hostage dies during failed rescue attempt in northeast Afghanistan

[News_Editor]

British hostage dies during failed rescue attempt in northeast Afghanistan

2010-10-09 21:25:53 GMT+7 (ICT)

LONDON/KABUL (BNO NEWS) -- A British aid worker who was kidnapped in northeastern Afghanistan was killed during a failed rescue attempt on Friday evening, officials said on Saturday.

Linda Norgrove, 36, originally from Scotland, was kidnapped along with three of her colleagues in eastern Afghanistan's Kunar province on September 26 after they were ambush. Her colleagues were soon safely released.

British Foreign Secretary William Hague on Saturday said that a NATO operation was initiated on Friday evening after information about where Linda was being held was received. "We decided that, given the danger she was facing, her best chance of safe release was to act on that information," Hague said.

However, during the course of the rescue attempt, her captors killed Norgrove. "Responsibility for this tragic outcome rests squarely with the hostage takers," Hague added. "From the moment they took her, her life was under grave threat. Given who held her, and the danger she was in, we judged that Linda’s best chance lay in attempting to rescue her."

Hague expressed his gratitude to Britain's NATO allies and to the Afghan authorities and security forces for 'doing all they could' to secure the safe release of Norgrove. ""Hostage taking is never justified and the UK does not make concessions to hostage-takers. But whenever British nationals are kidnapped, we and our allies will do everything in our power to free them," he said.

Hague concluded: "It is a tragedy that Linda was taken whilst doing the job she loved in a country she loved. Our thoughts are with her family and friends at this terrible time and I would ask the media to allow them time to come to terms with their sad loss."

Norgrove had been working with Development Alternatives Inc (DAI), an organization that aims to create jobs, boost local economies, and strengthen local Afghan leadership in unstable and vulnerable areas. It is funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development.

DAI President and CEO James Boomgard called the failed rescue attempt devastating news. "Our first thoughts at this moment are with Linda’s immediate family: her parents, John and Lorna, and her sister Sofie. On behalf of all DAI employees, I extend to them our heartfelt condolences for their terrible loss."

Boomgard said Norgrove was a wonderful woman whose sole purpose in Afghanistan was to do good and to help the Afghan people to achieve a measure of prosperity and stability in their everyday lives. "Linda loved Afghanistan and cared deeply for its people, and she was deeply committed to her development mission," Boomgard added. "She was an inspiration to many of us here at DAI and she will be deeply missed."

Norgrove spent most of her adult life working for and managing projects in developing countries, mostly projects that help farmers and rural workers build sustainable livelihoods while protecting the environment, DAI said.

As of February, Norgrove was based in Jalalabad and worked for DAI as their Regional Director. She worked together with more than 200 Afghan professionals and collaborated with the relevant Afghan Ministries.

-- © BNO News All rights reserved 2010-10-09

[hobanse]

Get the hel_l out of Afghanistan. Stop working, fighting and dying for Cheneys Pipeline!

Edited October 9, 2010 by hobanse

[britmaveric]

^what rubbish!

[Tigs]

^what rubbish!

Care to expand! Why are we there? If you can elude to that it would be just dandy as most of the armed forces who are fighting there don't have a clue why we are in there. So Cheney's pipeline seems as valid an excuse as any.

[britmaveric]

:crazy: :crazy:

[Tigs]

:crazy: :crazy:

Thanks for the intelligent response.

[Wellington]

:crazy: :crazy:

Thanks for the intelligent response.

It seems a pity that after the awful murder of a British woman this thread has already degenerated into puerile bickering.