2010 Badakhshan massacre

Last updated

2010 Badakhshan killings
Afghanistan Badakhshan Province location.PNG
Badakhshan Province, Afghanistan
Location Badakhshan Province, Afghanistan
Date6 August 2010
Attack type
Shooting
Deaths10

On 5 August 2010, ten members of International Assistance Mission (IAM) Nuristan Eye Camp team were killed in Kuran wa Munjan District of Badakhshan Province in Afghanistan. [1] [2] The team was attacked as it was returning from Nuristan to Kabul. One team member was spared while the rest of the team were killed immediately. Those killed were six Americans, two Afghans, one Briton and one German. [3]

Contents

The identity of the attackers is unknown. When news of the killings broke, both Hizb-e Islami and the Taliban initially claimed responsibility for the attack, [2] accusing the doctors of proselytism and spying. [4] [5] [6] These claims were later refuted by Taliban leaders in Nuristan and Badakhshan, who stated that they had confirmed the dead were bona-fide aid workers, condemned the killings as murder, and offered their condolences to the families of those killed. [7]

The attack was the deadliest strike against foreign aid workers in the Afghanistan war. [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] The killings underscored the suspicion Christian-affiliated groups face from some Afghans and government opponents and the wider risks faced by aid workers in the country. [13]

Background and context

Badakhshan province borders Tajikistan and is inhabited by mostly Tajik people. It is one of the few provinces in Afghanistan which was not controlled by the Taliban when it was in power. [14] After coming under increasing pressure by NATO forces in southern Afghanistan the Taliban have become active in areas like Badakhshan Province which were previously calm. In addition they have started using women and children as suicide bombers and targeted tribal elders, things they formerly considered taboo. [2] Foreign aid workers have been attacked in the past but these attacks have been relatively infrequent and Taliban has allowed some aid workers in the areas they controlled. [9] Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission stated that civilian deaths were up five percent in 2010 and Taliban was responsible for 68% of the 1325 deaths till 8 August 2010 and NATO was responsible for 28%. [15] IAM is a Christian organization that has worked in Afghanistan since 1966. They have denied proselytizing, [16] as for non-Muslims it is against the law of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan. According to critics propagandists of the Taliban insurgency portray their drive for power as a defense of Islam. The victims of the massacre had indeed been sponsored by a Christian charity, but that organization worked in Afghanistan since 1966, under a monarchy, a communist regime, warlords, and under the Taliban; its aid workers were said to understand the Afghan customs and sensibilities and have scrupulously obeyed prohibitions against proselytizing. [17] None of the Christian non-profit's workers had ever been killed while on duty with the organisation. [18]

The publicity on the massacre and its aftermath coincided with the publication of the 2010 Mid-Year Report on Protection of Civilians in Armed Conflict of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), [19] [20] [21] in which worries were expressed about the rising number of civilian casualties in Afghanistan and that was directly followed by an advice of human rights organisation Amnesty International that the Taliban should be prosecuted for war crimes. [22] According to the UNAMA report, the tactics of the Taliban and other Anti-Government Elements (AGEs) were behind a 31 per cent increase in conflict-related civilian casualties in the first six months of 2010 compared with the same period in 2009. Casualties attributed to Pro-Government Forces (PGF) fell 30 per cent during the same period, driven by a 64 per cent decline in deaths and injuries caused by aerial attacks. Many Afghans blame the international forces for the civilian deaths, "stirring up greater violence by fomenting new recruits for the Taliban, for arming militias in the countryside, and for propping up warlords and corrupt Afghan officials". [23] [24] [25]

Ambush

The team, which included a doctor, a dentist and an optometrist, was returning to Kabul after providing eye care to villagers in Parun valley in Nuristan Province, south of Badakhshan Province in Northeast Afghanistan. [11] They had been running an eye camp in Nuristan, for which they had received permission from the Afghan government. They had chosen to travel through a forest in Badakhshan as this was considered a safer route back to Kabul. The team was attacked when they stopped after fording a river. They were killed immediately, without any negotiation. The gunmen took them into the forest, stood them in a line and shot them one by one. One Afghan driver was spared after he started chanting verses from the Qur'an. [2] When the bodies were recovered, the victims appeared to have been robbed. [14] The two Afghans killed worked as a watchman and a cook. The bodies of the victims were flown back to Kabul on 8 August 2010. [15] The foreigners killed were all unpaid volunteers. [14]

Victims

There was a total of 10 victims: [9] [26]

Mahram Ali

Mahram Ali, aged 51 years, [27] of the Hazara ethnic minority, from Wardak, Afghanistan, was a civilian contractor that had been a worker at the National Organisation for Ophthalmic Rehabilitation's (NOOR's) maintenance workshop since 2007; [28] he served as a driver for the expedition, and as "watcher", to guard team vehicles. [28] [29] In this service to IAM, Ali drove and "stayed behind guarding the vehicles in Nawa when the rest of the team walked over the pass into Nuristan." [28] Ali was described as "the only person to care for his family" by Rahim Majid, the operations manager at IAM. [29] Ali was also survived by a wife and three young children, [28] [29] including one son paralyzed by polio and another son whose arm had been amputated, all supported on his monthly salary of $150. [27] [29]

Cheryl Beckett

Cheryl Beckett, aged 32 years, [27] was an aid worker and translator, from Knoxville, Tennessee, United States, and an Indiana Wesleyan University graduate; she had been in Afghanistan for six years and specialized in nutritional gardening, maternal health and child care. [30] [31]

Daniela Beyer

Daniela Beyer, aged 35 years, [27] from Chemnitz-Wittgensdorf, Germany, was a linguist and translator in German, English and Russian who also spoke Dari and was learning Pashto. [32] [33]

Brian Carderelli

Brian Carderelli, aged 25 years and from Harrisonburg, Virginia, United States, [27] was a civilian contractor, and a professional freelance videographer who had worked with various Afghan development and humanitarian organizations in Afghanistan. [34] [35] [36] Carderelli had been working for the International School of Kabul, and documenting aid work done by the IAM and other groups. [35] A statement released by his family said that Carderelli "loved people and was particularly concerned for the poor". [35] [36] He was a lifelong member of Covenant Presbyterian Church in Harrisonburg, [35] and a 2009 graduate of James Madison University and was approaching the one year anniversary of his service in Afghanistan. [35] [36] According to his family, "Brian quickly fell in love with the Afghan people and culture and hoped to stay within the country for another year", [35] and was compiling a photographic and video album entitled "The Beautiful – It's Not All War." [35] [36]

Thomas Grams

Thomas Grams, aged 51 years, [27] of Durango, Colorado, United States, friend of team leader Tom Little, began to work in dentistry for impoverished children about 10 years before his death, via Denver-based agency Global Dental Relief (GDR). [27] [37] One of native twin brothers and dentists from Park Rapids, Minnesota, [38] Grams left their "thriving" private general dentistry practice in Durango in 2007 to join GDR full-time, [27] [37] [39] [40] going first to Nepal ("trekk[ing]... halfway up... Everest, carrying dental equipment by yak" [27] ), [37] and then several times to Afghanistan, initially as a volunteer, and later as team leader. [37] [38] [40] Significant Afghanistan efforts included providing free dental care in the village Wardak, "negotiat[ing] the etiquette of the burka" to found a Kabul dental clinic (employing a local female dentist), [27] [39] and participating in English teaching at a local school. [39] "[U]nassuming and modest," Grams was described by the IAM as "one of our favorit[e]" aid workers. [37]

Jawed

Jawed, known by this single name, aged 24 years, [27] from Panjshir, Afghanistan, was a civilian contractor that had been at the Eye Hospital of the Afghan Ministry of Public Health in Kabul, and was given leave to serve as the team cook at its Eye Camp. [41] This was not his first service with IAM, where he cooked and helped with dispensing eyeglasses; per the IAM, "Jawed had been on several eye camps into Nuristan in the past, and was well loved for his sense of humor", [41] and was known for providing his collection of music tapes for weddings and parties. [27] The principal breadwinner for his wife, three young children, and extended family, [27] [41] Jawed had been excited about the $20 per day in overtime that he was earning on the medical outreach trip. [27] Jawed's brother Abdul Bagin described his killers as "infidels; not human, not Muslims... [killing] without any judgment, without any trial". [27]

Glen D. Lapp

Glen D. Lapp, aged 40 years, [27] was a nurse and executive assistant from Lancaster, Pennsylvania, United States, and a part of Community Mennonite Church of Lancaster. [42] Lapp was a medical volunteer with the IAM and its partner, the Mennonite Central Committee (MCC). [42] He was serving as manager of IAM's provincial Ophthalmology program, and as an executive assistant for IAM in Afghanistan, [42] and had been in Afghanistan for two years. [43] Lapp was an alumnus of Eastern Mennonite and Johns Hopkins Universities, and had assisted the MCC in the weeks following Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, with regular prior nursing work Lancaster, Supai, Arizona, and New York City. [42]

Tom Little

Tom Little, aged 61 years, [27] was an optometrist from Delmar, New York, United States, and leader of the IAM team. Little had worked in Afghanistan for more than three decades, having arrived in the late 1970s; [44] he had raised three daughters there,[ citation needed ] and spoke Dari fluently. [44] Little was posthumously recognized as International Optometrist of the Year by the World Council of Optometry, [45] and the 2010 Presidential Medal of Freedom. [46]

Dan Terry

Dan Terry, aged 64 years, [27] was from Wisconsin, United States, who served as liaison with local communities, aid organizations, and the government; he had performed relief work in Afghanistan since 1971, following in his father's footsteps who had worked for IAM as the executive director. He is survived by his wife, three daughters, their spouses and seven grandchildren. [47] [48]

Karen Woo

Karen Woo, aged 36 years, [27] daughter of a Chinese father and English mother, [49] was a general surgeon from Stevenage, Hertfordshire, UK, [3] [37] trained at St Mary's Hospital, London and formerly with the English healthcare organisation Bupa. [50] Woo's work involved helping pregnant women, in an area with a high global infant mortality rate.[ citation needed ] After her death, Woo's family stated that "although very spiritual, she did not really believe in organised religion" and that her motivations were purely humanitarian. [51] [52] Woo was engaged to be married at the time of her death. [2]

Survivors

The only two survivors of the eye camp team were Said Yasin and Safiullah, both Afghan. Said Yasin had left the team several days earlier and returned to Kabul by another route, [26] whereas Safiullah was spared after reciting verses from the Koran. [53]

Responsibility

The local officials initially stated that the motive was robbery, but after interviewing witnesses they changed their view and said that Taliban was responsible. [2] Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid claimed responsibility for the attacks and accused the victims of being "American spies" and "proselytizing Christianity". [14] He also claimed that the victims had Bibles in their possession which had been translated into Dari, the local language. [54] However, another group also was mentioned, the Hizb-i-Islami (HIA) of warlord Gulbuddin Hekmatyar. [55] [56] [57] [58] Earlier claims of the Taliban were refuted by Qari Malang, the representative of the Western Nuristan Taliban. He said that commanders from Nuristan had not carried out the killings and they had launched an investigation to find out who had. "We shall inform you of the results when it is concluded. We regret these killings and strongly assert that this is not the work of the Taliban who will never do harm to genuine aid workers… as soon as we manage to apprehend those responsible for this act, we shall subject them to whatever punishment our laws prescribe." [7] Dirk Frans, executive director of the IAM in Kabul, doubted whether the local Taliban were behind the attack, [59] in contrast to a statement by U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton which directly blamed the Taliban for what she described as a "despicable act of wanton violence.". In her reaction on 8 August 2010, she stated: "We condemn in the strongest possible terms this senseless act. We also condemn the Taliban’s transparent attempt to justify the unjustifiable by making false accusations about their activities in Afghanistan. Terror has no religion (...), they have shown us yet another example of the lengths to which they will go to advance their twisted ideology." [60] [61]

Reactions

In the weeks following the attack a senior Taliban leader, Qari Malang (the representative of the Western Nuristan Taliban) stated "We have checked the facts regarding these foreigners, and our people in the area have confirmed that they were bona fide aid workers and had been providing assistance to the population. Furthermore, we have learnt that among the killed foreigners, was Dan Terry, who had a long history of helping our people, including in Kunar and Laghman provinces and that he had previously provided welfare assistance to the families of those civilians martyred in bombardments… We pass on our condolences to the families of those killed." [7]

After the massacre, the IAM stated that they had no plans to leave Afghanistan. [62] US Federal Bureau of Investigation has opened an investigation into the attacks according to a spokesman from US embassy. [62] [63]

Former Afghan presidential candidate Abdullah Abdullah who is a physician himself and trained with Tom Little deplored the killings and called the attackers "enemies of the Afghan people." [64]

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, who emphasized that "health workers must have access to treat those in need and must be able to do so without fear." [65] His Special Representative Staffan de Mistura said "The United Nations condemns this serious crime and apparent cold-blooded execution." [66]

Australian foreign minister Stephen Smith issued a statement condemning the attack and offered condolences to the victims' families. [67] British foreign secretary William Hague condemned the attack and stated "This is a deplorable and cowardly act which is against the interests of the people of Afghanistan who depended on the services she [Karen Woo] was bravely helping to provide." [68] United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton condemned the killings, calling them "despicable acts of wanton violence." (see above) [15] Karl Eikenberry, the current United States Ambassador to Afghanistan, speaking to Afghan people said, "Their murder demonstrates the absolute disregard that terrorist-inspired Taliban and other insurgents have for your health, have for your security and have for your opportunity, They don't care about your future. They only care about themselves and their own ideology." [37] US special envoy Richard Holbrooke stated the killers do not represent average Afghans, most of whom were shocked by these killings. [69]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Taliban</span> Militant organization in control of Afghanistan

The Taliban, which also refers to itself by its state name, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is an Afghan political and militant movement with an ideology comprising elements of Pashtun nationalism and the Deobandi movement of Islamic fundamentalism. It ruled approximately 75% of Afghanistan from 1996 to 2001, before it was overthrown by an American invasion after the September 11th attacks carried out by the Taliban's ally al-Qaeda. The Taliban recaptured Kabul in August 2021 following the departure of coalition forces, after 20 years of Taliban insurgency, and now controls the entire country. The Taliban government is not recognized by any country and has been internationally condemned for restricting human rights, including women's rights to work and have an education.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Taliban insurgency</span> Insurgency during the War in Afghanistan

The Taliban insurgency began after the group's fall from power during the 2001 War in Afghanistan. The Taliban forces fought against the Afghan government, led by President Hamid Karzai, and later by President Ashraf Ghani, and against a US-led coalition of forces that has included all members of NATO; the 2021 Taliban offensive resulted in the collapse of the government of Ashraf Ghani. The private sector in Pakistan extends financial aid to the Taliban, contributing to their financial sustenance.

During the War in Afghanistan, according to the Costs of War Project the war killed 176,000 people in Afghanistan: 46,319 civilians, 69,095 military and police and at least 52,893 opposition fighters. However, the death toll is possibly higher due to unaccounted deaths by "disease, loss of access to food, water, infrastructure, and/or other indirect consequences of the war." According to the Uppsala Conflict Data Program, the conflict killed 212,191 people. The Cost of War project estimated in 2015 that the number who have died through indirect causes related to the war may be as high as 360,000 additional people based on a ratio of indirect to direct deaths in contemporary conflicts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Christianity in Afghanistan</span>

Christians have historically comprised a small community in Afghanistan. The total number of Christians in Afghanistan is currently estimated to be between 15,000 and 20,000 according to International Christian Concern. Almost all Afghan Christians are converts from Islam. The Pew Research Center estimates that 40,000 Afghan Christians were living in Afghanistan in 2010. The Islamic Republic of Afghanistan did not recognize any Afghan citizen as being a Christian, with the exception of many expatriates. Christians of Muslim background communities can be found in Afghanistan, estimated between 500-8,000, or between 10,000 to 12,000.

The 2009 UN guest house attack happened in the early hours of October 28, 2009, in Kabul, Afghanistan. 3 Taliban attackers stormed a guest house used by the United Nations, killing five UN staff, two Afghan security personnel and an Afghan civilian.

Events from the year 2010 in Afghanistan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tom Little (optometrist)</span>

Thomas E. Little was an American optometrist from Kinderhook, New York, most widely known as the leader of an International Assistance Mission team that was killed in the 2010 Badakhshan massacre.

The following lists events from 2014 in Afghanistan.

The following lists events that happened during 2016 in Afghanistan.

Events in the year 2017 in Afghanistan.

On 24 January 2018, militants affiliated with Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant – Khorasan Province launched a bomb and gun attack on a Save the Children office in Jalalabad, a city in the eastern Afghan province of Nangarhar, killing six people and injuring 27.

Events from the year 2019 in Afghanistan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Islamic State–Taliban conflict</span> 2015–present armed conflict in Afghanistan

The Islamic State–Taliban conflict is an ongoing insurgency by the Islamic State Khorasan Province (IS-KP) against the Taliban regime in Afghanistan. The conflict initially began when both operated as rival insurgent groups in Nangarhar; since the formation of the Taliban's state in 2021, IS-KP members have enacted a campaign of terrorism targeting both civilians and assassinating Taliban members using hit-and-run tactics. The group have also caused incidents and attacks across the border in Pakistan.

The year 2021 in Afghanistan was marked by a major offensive from the Taliban beginning in May and the Taliban capturing Kabul in August.

War crimes in Afghanistan covers the period of conflict from 1979 to the present. Starting with the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979, 40 years of civil war in various forms has wracked Afghanistan. War crimes have been committed by all sides.

The republican insurgency in Afghanistan is an ongoing low-level guerrilla war between the National Resistance Front and allied groups which fight under the banner of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan on one side, and the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan on the other side. On 17 August 2021, former first vice president of Afghanistan Amrullah Saleh declared himself the "caretaker" president of Afghanistan and announced the resistance. On 26 August, a brief ceasefire was declared. On 1 September, talks broke down and fighting resumed as the Taliban attacked resistance positions.

Events in the year 2023 in Afghanistan.

References

  1. Gannon, Kathy (8 August 2010). "British aid worker killed in massacre in Afghanistan". The Herald . Archived from the original on 29 August 2018. Retrieved 8 August 2010.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Nordland, Rod (7 August 2010). "10 Medical Aid Workers Are Found Slain in Afghanistan". The New York Times . Retrieved 7 August 2010.
  3. 1 2 Gannon, Kathy (7 August 2010). "Afghan medical mission ends in death for 10". Associated Press. Archived from the original on 22 August 2010. Retrieved 7 August 2010.
  4. "Killing of British doctor in Afghanistan 'a cowardly act' says William Hague". The Daily Telegraph. London. 8 August 2010. Archived from the original on 11 August 2010. Retrieved 8 August 2010.
  5. "Foreign medical workers among 10 killed in Afghanistan". BBC News. 7 August 2010. Archived from the original on 7 August 2010. Retrieved 7 August 2010.
  6. "Eight foreign medical workers killed in Afghanistan". Reuters. 7 August 2010. Archived from the original on 21 August 2010. Retrieved 8 August 2010.
  7. 1 2 3 The Afghanistan Analysts Network: Ten Dead in Badakhshan 6: Local Taliban Say it was Murder Archived 6 March 2012 at the Wayback Machine
  8. Motlagh, Jason (9 August 2010). "Will Aid Workers' Killings End Civilian Surge?". TIME. Archived from the original on 4 February 2013. Retrieved 10 August 2010.
  9. 1 2 3 Partlow, Joshua (8 August 2010). "Taliban kills 10 medical aid workers in northern Afghanistan". The Washington Post . Retrieved 8 August 2010.
  10. King, Laura (7 August 2010). "6 Americans among 10 charity workers killed in Taliban ambush". Los Angeles Times . Retrieved 7 August 2010.
  11. 1 2 Jonsson, Patrik (7 August 2010). "International Assistance Mission slayings: part of Taliban war strategy". The Christian Science Monitor . Retrieved 7 August 2010.
  12. The Christian Science Monitor. "Afghanistan war: Deadly ambush of medical mission roils one of safest provinces". The Christian Science Monitor. Retrieved 13 December 2014.
  13. The Christian Science Monitor. "Afghanistan aid workers' deaths highlights delicate position of Christian-affiliated groups". The Christian Science Monitor. Retrieved 13 December 2014.
  14. 1 2 3 4 "Foreign medical workers among 10 killed in Afghanistan". BBC News . 7 August 2010. Retrieved 7 August 2010.
  15. 1 2 3 "Rights Commission: Afghan War Kills 1,325 Civilians This Year". Voice of America. 8 August 2010. Archived from the original on 13 August 2010. Retrieved 8 August 2010.
  16. Davies, Caroline (8 August 2010). "UK medic may have been killed for working with Christian group". The Guardian. London. Archived from the original on 11 August 2010. Retrieved 8 August 2010.
  17. "Afghanistan: The Taliban's fake religious war". The Boston Globe. 10 August 2010. Archived from the original on 18 August 2010. Retrieved 10 August 2010.
  18. "Christian NGO mourns workers killed in Afghanistan". Christian Today. 10 August 2010. Retrieved 13 December 2014.
  19. "Afghanistan: Mid Year Report 2010: Protection of Civilians in Armed Conflict". Archived from the original on 12 July 2011. Retrieved 11 August 2010.
  20. Nordland, Rod (10 August 2010). "Insurgents Blamed as Afghan Civilian Casualties Rise". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 27 March 2012. Retrieved 11 August 2010.
  21. The Christian Science Monitor. "Afghanistan war: UN report blames insurgents for rise in civilian deaths". The Christian Science Monitor. Retrieved 13 December 2014.
  22. "Taleban should be prosecuted for war crimes in Afghanistan - Amnesty International". 10 August 2010. Retrieved 13 December 2014.
  23. "Afghan civilian casualties rise 31 per cent in first six months of 2010". Archived from the original on 11 August 2010. Retrieved 11 August 2010.
  24. "The killing fields of Afghanistan". The Guardian. London. 11 August 2010. Archived from the original on 11 August 2010. Retrieved 11 August 2010.
  25. "What Washington Should Learn From the Death of Aid Workers in Afghanistan". HuffPost. 10 August 2010. Retrieved 13 December 2014.
  26. 1 2 "Press Release 1 International Assistance Mission: On the death of 10 of the 12 Nuristan Eye Camp team members". 9 August 2010. Archived from the original on 14 August 2010. Retrieved 9 August 2010.
  27. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 Shaila Dewan & Rod Nordland, 2010, "Slain Aid Workers Were Bound by Their Sacrifice," The New York Times (online), 9 August 2010, see , accessed 4 January 2014.
  28. 1 2 3 4 "Mahram Ali, Aid Worker, Executed in Afghanistan". Overseas Civilian Contractors. 9 August 2010. Retrieved 13 December 2014.
  29. 1 2 3 4 Rod Nordland, 2010, "Afghan Aid Leader Recalls Talk of Risk," The New York Times (online), 9 August 2010, see , accessed 4 January 2010.
  30. "Cheryl Beckett part of Medical Team executed in Afghanistan". Overseas Civilian Contractors. 9 August 2010. Retrieved 13 December 2014.
  31. "Owensville Native Among Aid Workers Slain in Afghanistan". Archived from the original on 10 March 2012. Retrieved 11 August 2010.
  32. "Daniela Beyer Executed in Afghanistan". Overseas Civilian Contractors. 9 August 2010. Retrieved 13 December 2014.
  33. [Die in Afghanistan getötete Dolmetscherin aus Sachsen ist in ihrer Kirchgemeinde in Chemnitz-Wittgensdorf beigesetzt worden. "In Afghanistan getötete Chemnitzerin beigesetzt"]
  34. "Bryan Carderelli, Freelance Videographer, Executed in Afghanistan". Overseas Civilian Contractors. 9 August 2010. Retrieved 13 December 2014.
  35. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Kathy Matheson (AP), 2010, "James Madison University Grad Among Those Killed in Afghanistan," The Huffington Post (online), 9 August 2010 (updated 25 May 2011), see , accessed 4 January 2014.
  36. 1 2 3 4 Matthew Hay Brown, 2010, "Aid group rejects claim workers sought converts," The Baltimore Sun (blogs, online), 9 August 2010, see , accessed 4 January 2014.
  37. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 CNN Wire Staff, 2010, "U.S. officials condemn attacks on aid workers in Afghanistan, CNN (online), 9 August 2010, see , accessed 4 January 2010.
  38. 1 2 Sarah Smith, 2010 "Park Rapids graduate-turned-dentist killed on Afghanistan aid mission," Prairie Business (online), 11 August 2010, see Archived 4 January 2015 at archive.today , accessed 4 January 2014.
  39. 1 2 3 Mary Urashima, 2010, "A Seed Fallen to Earth: Thomas Grams gave his life helping people in Afghanistan," Surf City Voice (online), 12 August 2010, see Archived 4 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine , accessed 4 January 2010.
  40. 1 2 Eltaf Najafizada & Susan Decker, 2010 "German, Six Americans on Medical Mission Murdered in Afghanistan Ambush," Bloomberg (online), 8 August 2010, see , accessed 4 January 2014.
  41. 1 2 3 "Jawed, Aid Worker, Executed in Afghanistan". Overseas Civilian Contractors. 9 August 2010. Retrieved 13 December 2014.
  42. 1 2 3 4 Knapp, Tom (8 August 2010). "Lancaster MCC volunteer killed in Afghanistan". Intelligencer Journal . Archived from the original on 27 January 2013. Retrieved 8 August 2010.
  43. Alpert, Lukas (8 August 2010). "American nurse, dentist identified as 2 more victims of Afghan Taliban attack on medical personnel". New York Daily News . Archived from the original on 15 August 2010. Retrieved 8 August 2010.
  44. 1 2 "Slain NY doctor was in Afghanistan for 3 decades". Greenwich Time . 7 August 2010. Retrieved 7 August 2010.[ permanent dead link ]
  45. "2010 International Optometrist of the Year - Dr Tom Little". World Council of Optometry. 22 September 2010. Archived from the original on 24 November 2016. Retrieved 14 February 2016.
  46. "President Obama Names Presidential Medal of Freedom Recipients". whitehouse.gov . 17 November 2010. Retrieved 14 February 2016 via National Archives.
  47. "Medical humanitarian murdered in Afghanistan had ties to Sequim". Peninsula Daily News. Retrieved 13 December 2014.
  48. "Dan Terry, Aid Worker, Executed in Afghanistan". Overseas Civilian Contractors. 9 August 2010. Retrieved 13 December 2014.
  49. Farmer, Ben; Evans, Martin (9 August 2010). "Family of British doctor murdered in Afghanistan pay tribute to 'true hero'". London: Telegraph(UK). Archived from the original on 11 August 2010. Retrieved 9 August 2010.
  50. Boone, Jon (7 August 2010). "Karen Woo: selfless doctor gunned down in Afghanistan's badlands". The Guardian . London. Retrieved 7 August 2010.
  51. Boone, Jon (8 August 2010). "Doctor killed on Afghanistan aid mission was not religious, say family". The Guardian . London. Archived from the original on 17 August 2010. Retrieved 8 August 2010.
  52. Pickover, Ella (August 2010). "Doctor murdered by Taliban was not 'Christian missionary'". Press & Journal . Retrieved 9 August 2010.
  53. Boone, Jon (9 August 2010). "US leader of murdered Afghanistan medical team 'brushed aside' warnings". The Guardian. London. Archived from the original on 15 August 2010. Retrieved 10 August 2010.
  54. "Afghan police hunt killers of Dr Karen Woo". BBC News . 8 August 2010. Retrieved 8 August 2010.
  55. "Hezb-e-Islami killed 2 Afghans and 8 foreigners" Archived 17 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine
  56. "HIA claims killing medics" [ permanent dead link ]
  57. "2 militants groups claim responsibility for killing 8 foreigners in NE Afghanistan". Archived from the original on 6 November 2012. Retrieved 13 December 2014.
  58. "Hizb-i-Islami, Taliban both claim killing 10 medical workers in northern Afghanistan". 7 August 2010. Retrieved 13 December 2014.
  59. "Aid group doubts Afghan Taliban killed medical team". Reuters. 9 August 2010. Archived from the original on 29 November 2020. Retrieved 11 August 2010.
  60. "Killing of medical aid workers in Afghanistan". Archived from the original on 24 September 2017. Retrieved 24 June 2017.
  61. Lavis, Ryan (8 August 2010). "Secretary of State Hillary Clinton lashes out at Taliban thugs after medical team murders". Daily News. New York. Archived from the original on 17 August 2010. Retrieved 11 August 2010.
  62. 1 2 Reid, Robert (10 August 2010). "Despite massacre, aid group says it has no plans to leave Afghanistan". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Archived from the original on 17 August 2010. Retrieved 10 August 2010.
  63. Nakamura, David (10 August 2010). "FBI will conduct autopsies on 6 American aid workers slain in Afghanistan". The Washington Post . Retrieved 11 August 2010.
  64. "Afghan politician Abdullah praises killed medics". BBC. 8 August 2010. Archived from the original on 8 August 2010. Retrieved 8 August 2010.
  65. "United Nations News Centre". UN News Service Section. 9 August 2010. Retrieved 13 December 2014.
  66. "Press Statements – UN envoy on medical workers killed in Badakhshan". Archived from the original on 26 July 2011. Retrieved 9 August 2010.
  67. "Govt condemns Taliban slayings". The Sydney Morning Herald . 8 August 2010. Retrieved 8 August 2010.
  68. Partlow, Joshua (8 August 2010). "Official: Aid worker slayings 'a deplorable and cowardly act'; all bodies recovered". The Washington Post . Retrieved 8 August 2010.
  69. Truscott, Claire (10 August 2010). "Afghans shocked by aid worker murders". The Sydney Morning Herald . Retrieved 10 August 2010.