10-strong humanitarian medical team killed in Afghanistan

[Ponders]

I couldn't believe it when I heard it on the news this evening.

& the Taliban try to justify it by claiming they were missionaries

Karen Woo was clearly an amazing woman

\link{http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/aug/07/british-aid-worker-killed-afghanistan1\Guardian report}

So desperately sad. The Taliban are lunatics.

I don't know what to say. It's awful.

I don't think it was the Taliban... they're just jumping on a convenient bandwagon created by armed bandits and making 'we're so tough' PR mileage out of it as usual. Awful tragedy for the people of the area that now won't get their clinic and poor people in a similar position when aid workers can no longer travel. Terrible for the families of the party that was killed, of course. Dangerous place Afghanistan.

Just read Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson who has helped thousands of kids in Pakistan and Afghanistan to get an education to prevent this kind of lunacy. He did so at great personal risk and sacrifice and was helped by exceptional local people. This is so tragic and stems from ignorance paired with violence. If you want to do something donate to something like the CAI www.ikat.org/.

It's horrific. Saw a photo of the lovely British doctor this morning - lovely looking girl, clever, compassionate, selfless. She was due to get married soon after a whirlwind romance.

I'll never understand the mentality that makes you kill someone who is helping your people.

I have a friend who used to work out there and knows some them. Selfishly my reaction was I was glad it wasn't her. But it was someones friend/daughter/girlfriend/husband

Unbelievable. Cant believe 10 such people are just taken off the earth. They helped so many people purely for altruistic reasons. How many medical teams will go anywhere near Afganistan and surrounding countries now :(