These were the two people in the Phillippines who had been taken hostage a year ago.
I don’t think we’re supposed to link directly to copyrighted articles, but here is the website where there is an article about it. It happened just a few days ago. I’m not surprised, but I am very bummed.
It’s a bummer, yes, but I doubt very much the kidnappers were ever planning to let those two people go
There are two dead! Why do people forget everyone but the Americans when stuff like this happens? CNN just mentions occasionally that a Filipino nurse that was also kidnapped with them was also killed.
Is it just me, or has this been one of the most underreported stories ever? They’ve been there over a year, and I know I’d never heard of them until well after Sept. 11.
(vivalostwages, it’s ok to link to copyrighted articles, just not to post them.)
I hear what you said **Lok. ** The two American missionaries, Gracia and Martin Burnham, were from Kansas so here in Topeka we heard more about them. But it was not forgotten, though less prominently mentioned, that the nurse Ediborah Yap, was also a hostage.
Martin and Ediborah, may God give you eternal rest, and may light perpetual shine upon you.
Here is what I put in my journal on June 7:
6:21 am It wasn’t supposed to be this way
A Moslem militant group (Abu Sayyaf) in the Phillipines kidnapped missionaries Martin and Gracia Burnham, Guillermo Sobero, nurse Deborah Yap, and 17 Filipinos over a year ago. Mr. Sobero’s beheaded remains were later found. The Filipinos were later released, but the militants have been holding the others hostage ever since. For over a year the others were held… hoping that one day it would end and they would be free to return home. Yesterday or sometime recently (I’m not quite clear on that) a rescue attempt was finally made. Get those three people out of there and returned to their families.
Except it didn’t go down like that. Martin Burnham and the nurse Deborah Yap were killed in crossfire during the rescue. Gracia Burnham was shot in the leg but her injuries are not life threatening.
Can you imagine the hope, when you realize that your salvation has come, the rescuers are at the door, they have a plan–they have weapons–they are here to save you! And just when it looks like this horrible ordeal is over, you lose your spouse to gunfire and suffer injuries yourself… I can’t even begin to comprehend the sense of loss.
Fuckers.
My mood right now is " sad"