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NEWS ABOUT: aid workers

US, Danish Aid Workers Kidnapped in Somalia

Demining workers seized by pirates

(Newser) - Three aid workers who were helping to remove land mines in northern Somalia have been kidnapped by gunmen who attacked their convoy. The three—a 32-year-old American woman, a 60-year-old Danish man, and a Somali colleague—were seized on their way to an airport and security officials believe they are... More »

Karzai Ban May Squash US-Led Rebuilding Effort

US official: 'We might as well go home'

(Newser) - US-backed reconstruction projects—worth upward of $1.5 billion—are grinding to a halt, as firms begin to shutter them over the Afghan government's refusal to lift its ban on the use of private security contractors, reports the Washington Post . An official called the development "catastrophic" to America's effort... More »

US Grenade May Have Killed British Aid Worker

Linda Norgrove died in flubbed rescue effort

(Newser) - Though initial reports stated that Linda Norgrove's Taliban captors detonated a bomb that killed her, the kidnapped British aid worker may have actually been killed by a grenade thrown by American forces during the flubbed rescue attempt in Afghanistan. British PM David Cameron made the announcement today, but defended the... More »

UK Aid Worker Killed in Botched Afghan Rescue

Linda Norgrove had been kidnapped Sept. 26

(Newser) - A British aid worker kidnapped in Afghanistan last month was killed last night in a failed rescue attempt. UK Foreign Secretary William Hague said the UK received a tip about where Linda Norgrove was being held, and "given the danger she was facing," decided "her best chance... More »

Survivor Tells of Medics' Last Moments

Gunshots, pleadings, death

(AP) - The first sign of danger was the crackle of gunfire over their heads. Ten gunmen, their faces covered, rushed toward terrified humanitarian workers and began shouting "Satellite! Satellite!" —a demand to surrender their phones. Moments later, 10 of them lay dead, including two women hiding in the... More »

3 US Soldiers Killed in Attack on Pakistan Girls' School

Bomb targets convoy traveling to school's opening ceremony

(Newser) - Three US soldiers were among at least 10 people killed when the Pakistani Taliban targeted the opening ceremony of a girls' school today. At least 70 people, including many schoolgirls, were injured when a roadside blast hit a group traveling in a convoy guarded by a military escort, the BBC... More »

American Helps Pull Wife From Haitian Rubble

Former CBS worker Frank Thorp was 6 hours from capital

(Newser) - A former CBS employee made a mad dash from rural Haiti to its devastated capital yesterday just in time to assist workers in rescuing his wife, an aid worker, from the rubble of her organization’s headquarters. Frank Thorp was 100 miles away from Port-au-Prince—a 6-hour drive—when he... More »

Attacks on Aid Workers Hit Record in 2008

It's more dangerous to distribute aid than fight as a UN peacekeeper

(Newser) - A shocking number of fatal attacks on international aid workers made 2008 the most dangerous year yet to perform such work, Reuters reports. Last year, 260 workers were attacked on the job, 122 fatally; the majority were working in Somalia, Darfur, or Afghanistan. The Center on International Cooperation’s study... More »

US Aid Worker Shot Dead in Pakistan

Gunman kills man and driver

(AP) - Gunmen shot and killed an American aid worker as he traveled to work today in northwestern Pakistan, the latest in a spate of attacks on foreigners in the militancy-wracked country. The shooting occurred in University Town, an upscale area of Peshawar where a top US diplomat was attacked just a... More »

Aid Worker Murders Cripple Somali Relief

As crisis reaches flashpoint, 'organized terror campaign' drives out help

(Newser) - Aid workers are fleeing Somalia, even as global food prices soar and a full-blown famine is feared, in response to what officials say is an organized campaign of violence. Messages posted in the capital and sent to aid organizations threaten: “We know all the so-called aid workers. We promise... More »

Zimbabwe Halts Aid Groups, Detains Tsvangirai Again

Mugabe accuses charities of supporting the opposition

(Newser) - Zimbabwe today ordered all charities operating in the country to quit their work, saying they would not be allowed to resume until they had promised not to interfere in the upcoming election, the Guardian reports. The government also detained opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai for the second time this week, Reuters... More »

Burma Agrees to Accept All Aid

Junta drops opposition to aid workers entering country

(Newser) - Burma has agreed to let international disaster relief workers into the country to help with the aftermath of Cyclone Nargis, Bloomberg reports. The junta's about-face came after  UN chief Ban Ki-moon, who flew in yesterday, met the nation's  reclusive military leader, Senior Gen. Than Shwe. The UN hopes to ramp... More »

Burma Relents on Foreign Docs, Aid Workers

But only from ASEAN member nations

(Newser) - Two and a half weeks after cyclone Nargis hit, Burma finally agreed today to allow foreign medics and disaster experts into the battered country, reports the BBC—but only from ASEAN member nations. UN chief Ban Ki-Moon also plans to jet to Burma on Wednesday to bring additional pressure to... More »

US Aid Plane Lands in Burma

Official death toll at 32K; observers say it could be triple that

(Newser) - After days of negotiating, a US aid flight landed today in Rangoon, the BBC reports. It’s the latest sign Burma’s military junta might be relaxing its restrictions on foreign aid—a French charity’s plane also touched down—but relief workers still aren’t allowed in to distribute... More »

Chad Pardons, Frees French 'Orphan' Kidnappers

Chad's president pardons aid workers

(Newser) - The six men imprisoned for kidnapping 103 Chadian children have been pardoned and freed from a French prison, reports the BBC. Convicted in Chad and sentenced to hard labor, the members of charity group Zoe's Ark had been transferred to a facility in France, and received a pardon from Chadian... More »

Afghans Search for Abducted American

Taliban remains silent as police hunt for missing aid worker

(Newser) - Afghan police are searching for an American aid worker and her driver kidnapped yesterday in Kandahar. Police have tightened security in the southern city, AFP reports, blocking traffic and questioning Afghans in the area where Cyd Mizell was seized. Nobody has claimed responsibility; a Taliban spokesman refused to say whether... More »

Afghan Gunmen Kidnap Female US Aid Worker

Woman, 49, was wearing burqa when stopped near Kandahar

(Newser) - An American woman has been kidnapped in Afghanistan along with her driver, the AP reports. The woman, 49, worked for an aid organization and was wearing a burqa when she was stopped near the southern city of Kandahar. Police are searching for the kidnappers, whom a local governor called “... More »

Chad Sentences Aid Workers to 8 Years

Release likely after French govt. intervenes in 'kidnapping' case

(Newser) - Six French charity workers were convicted today of attempting to kidnap 103 children and send them from Chad to Europe, but a diplomatic agreement is expected to repatriate them before they begin their sentences of 8 years at hard labor, Reuters reports. The workers had testified that they believed the... More »

Koreans Talk About Ordeal

(Newser) - "All I could think about was staying alive," said one of the South Korean aid workers released from captivity in Afghanistan yesterday. “Now that the tension is gone my body aches all over.” The group reunited in a Kabul hotel today and spoke to the South... More »

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