Three killed, one injured in attack on Baptist hospital in Yemen

By Mark Kelly
RICHMOND, Va. (BP) -- Three Americans were killed and another wounded Monday, Dec. 30, when a lone gunman attacked a Baptist hospital in Jibla, Yemen.

Hospital administrator William E. Koehn, purchasing agent Kathleen A. Gariety and physician Martha C. Myers were killed and pharmacist Donald W. Caswell was injured in the early morning attack.

The Americans were involved in a meeting at the beginning of the work day at the hospital. A single gunman burst into the room and opened fire.

Koehn, Gariety and Myers were killed immediately. The gunman reportedly then moved to another room, where he wounded Caswell. He also aimed his gun at a Filipino hospital employee, but the weapon did not fire.

A 35-year-old man surrendered to hospital security personnel and was taken into custody.

Koehn, 60, of Arlington, Texas, had planned to retire in October 2003 after 28 years of service. Gariety, 53, was from Wauwatosa, Wisc. Myers, 57, was from Montgomery, Ala. Caswell, 49, is from Levelland, Texas. Caswell was taken to surgery, where two bullets were removed. He is expected to recover from his injuries.

All four served at the hospital as representatives of the Southern Baptist International Mission Board.

'DEVASTATED'
"We are devastated by this news," said board spokesman Larry Cox. "We are moving quickly to assist family members. We're grateful God spared the lives of others and pray that His spirit will meet the needs of everyone touched by this crisis."

As news of the attack spread, the streets outside were filled with local residents, said Kaye Rock, another Southern Baptist worker at the hospital.

"People here loved these people so much," Rock said. "Yesterday Bill gave sacks of wheat and sugar to widows and divorced women in city. He's been doing that almost every month with relief donations we receive.

"The people here who love us are decimated even more than we are, because they don't see the big picture," she said. "But the Bible says 'Precious in the eyes of the Lord is the blood of his saints.' The church is built on the blood of the martyrs, and any of those three people would have gladly given their lives for that."

'UNDETERRED'
The murders won't deter Americans at the hospital from their ministry, Rock said.

"We can't let someone with a gun make us afraid to do what God wants us to do. We're asking people to pray that these deaths will not be a senseless waste, but that God will complete all He has intended here and that He will be glorified."

No decision has been made about relocating other Americans connected with the hospital, Cox said. The American embassy in Sanaa advised Americans in the country to enhance their personal security and asked the Yemeni government to provide additional security for Americans.

The Southern Baptist International Mission Board has operated Jibla Baptist Hospital, located about 120 miles south of Yemen's capital, Sanaa, for 35 years. More than 40,000 patients a year are treated at the facility, which is on property owned by the Yemeni government. The hospital provides free care and medicine to those who cannot afford it. It also has responded to relief needs during earthquakes and famine.

"Our personnel, as Americans and Christians, are well aware of the risks of living and serving in a place like Yemen," said Jerry Rankin, International Mission Board president. "Yet their love of the Yemeni people and obedience to a conviction of God's leadership has been expressed in a willingness to take that risk -- and to give of their lives. Our hearts go out to their families, colleagues and local friends, who join us in grieving this tragic loss."

The International Mission Board (www.imb.org) is an entity of the 16-million-member Southern Baptist Convention. It has 5,487 missionaries working among 1,497 people groups worldwide. In 2001, Southern Baptist missionaries and their co-workers baptized more than 395,773 new believers and organized 5,775 churches.

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