Saturday, August 07, 2010
Tom Little, murdered in Afghanistan (photo: Connie Frisbee Houde, Global Village Photographer)
Eight foreign aid workers, including six Americans, were murdered in Badakhshan province in northern Afghanistan on Saturday. The six were medical workers belonging to the Christian aid group International Assistance Mission. Two Afghan interpreters were also killed. One of the victims was Tom Little, an optometrist who has worked in Afghanistan for more than 30 years.
The incident is a reminder of the continuing threat to American civilians operating in volatile areas abroad. Nine private citizens from the United States died in 2009 as a result of overseas terrorist incidents, according to data compiled by the State Department. The figures released also include the number of injuries (14) and kidnappings (4), none of which take into account military or U.S. government personnel.
Six of the deaths took place in Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan, and one each in Iraq, Mauritania and Somalia.
Of the 14 reported injuries, eight resulted from the twin hotel bombings on July 17, 2009, in Jakarta, Indonesia. The explosions occurred at the JW Marriott and Ritz-Carlton. Seven died in the blasts and more than 50 were wounded.
Two of the four kidnappings were in Colombia and one each in Pakistan and Kenya. All of the kidnapped Americans were released or rescued. The American kidnapped in Kenya, who was later released in Somalia, was also a member of International Assistance Mission.
-David Wallechinsky, Noel Brinkerhoff
Terrorism Deaths, Injuries, Kidnappings of Private U.S. Citizens, 2009 (Bureau of Consular Affairs, State Department)
Political Violence against Americans 2009 (Bureau of Diplomatic Security, State Department) (pdf)
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