Aug. 16, 2010 issue
MCC service worker killed in Afghanistan
Breaking news: updated version
By Celeste Kennel-Shank Mennonite Weekly ReviewA Mennonite Central Committee worker in Afghanistan was shot to death Aug. 5.
Glen Lapp, MCC service worker, and John Williamson, MCC Nepal, India and Afghanistan co-representative, pose for a picture in July in Kabul. — Photo by Tom Wenger/MCC
Glen D. Lapp, 40, of Lancaster, Pa., was traveling in northeastern Afghanistan with a medical team focusing on eye care. Local police found the bodies of two Afghans, six Americans, one Briton and one German from the team Aug. 6.
After delays due to poor weather, the bodies were officially identified in the capital, Kabul.
The team worked with MCC partner organization International Assistance Mission, a Christian nonprofit organization working in health care and economic development in Afghanistan.
“Glen served with commitment and grace as well as with a love of the people there,” said Arli Klassen, MCC executive director, in a statement. “He was grateful for the chance to share God’s love and compassion with people in need. We are grateful for his service to God, to the church and with the Afghan people. He will be missed and he will be remembered.”
This is the fourth conflict-related death of a worker during service that MCC has seen in its 90 years.
The Taliban and an affiliated group have said they are responsible, accusing the dead of trying to convert Afghans to Christianity, the New York Times reported. MCC has heard conflicting reports about the incident and is not sure who killed the team members or why.
Dirk Frans, IAM executive director, said in a statement the group was not distributing Bibles or trying to convert people.
“Our faith motivates and inspires us — but we do not proselytize,” Frans said. “IAM would not be invited back to villages if we were using aid as a cover for preaching.”
Lapp was to complete his two-year MCC term in October, and had already written his end-of-term report from Afghanistan.
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