Carmela Marie Cristiano, American Roman Catholic nun (Sisters of Charity of Saint Elizabeth); first nun to seek political office in New Jersey died he was , 83.

Sister Carmela Marie Cristiano, S.C.

(August 15, 1927 – August 1, 2011)

 was an American Catholic Religious Sister of the Sisters of Charity of Saint Elizabeth, who served the community as a teacher, social worker and activist. She received public attention for her high-profile battle with then-Jersey City Mayor Thomas J. Whelan over poor conditions and corruption at the city's orphan ward.^[1] In 1975, Sister Carmela became the first Sister to run for political office in New Jersey.^[1] She also founded two nonprofit corporations during her career.^[2]

Early life

Cristiano was born to Francis and Mary (née Canonica) Cristiano in New York City. She joined the Sisters of Charity of Saint Elizabeth, which are headquartered in Convent Station, New Jersey, on March 25, 1945.^[3] Cristiano remained a Sister within the congregation for the next sixty-six years.^[3] She obtained a bachelor's of science in education from the College of Saint Elizabeth.^[3]

Career

Sister Carmela worked as a schoolteacher throughout North Jersey for more than 20 years before entering social work.^[2] She taught at Catholic elementary schools in South Orange, Newark, New Brunswick, Jersey City, Totowa, Teaneck and Cliffside Park.^[3]
She became a social worker at the Hudson County Emergency Shelter beginning in 1968.^[2] In 1969, Cristiano openly complained to public officials in Jersey City about poor living conditions at the now defunct 6th floor Jersey City Medical Center orphan ward where she worked.^[1] She had been hired as the superintendent of the ward, which was used to house babies who had been orphaned in the city.^[1] In response, Jersey City officials terminated Cristiano in August 1969, leading to a public battle between her and Mayor Thomas J. Whelan.^[1] Cristiano refused to leave her office for several days upon learning that she had been fired by the Whelan administration.^[1] By openly criticizing corruption in Jersey City, specifically in the orphans' ward, Sister Cristiano has been credited with uncovering widespread extortion and misappropriation of public funds, which ultimately led to the conviction of Whelan and other officials in Jersey City and Hudson County.^[2][4] Mayor Whelan would be convicted of extortion as part of the "Hudson Eight" trial in 1971.^[1]
Sister Cristiano joined the faculty of the Jersey City YWCA in 1969, becoming the first Catholic Sister to teach at the organization.^[1] In 1971, she founded the Hudson Day Care Center Inc., located in Guttenberg, New Jersey.^[1] The center provided child care for mothers on welfare at eighteen day care centers throughout New Jersey.^[2][4] Her establishment of the Hudson Day Care Center led to her election as the state President of the New Jersey Federation of Business and Professional Women's Clubs.^[4]
Cristiano ran as a candidate for Hudson County Board of Chosen Freeholders in 1975, becoming the first Religious Sister to run for political office in New Jersey.^[1] She was unsuccessful in the election.^[1]
In 1984, she founded a daycare center in Brown Mills, Pemberton Township, New Jersey.^[2][4][2] She initially thought of retiring in Pemberton Township as well, but quickly become active in a number of other initiatives instead.^[4] Upon her "retirement", the day care center purchased a retirement home for her in the Country Lake Estates section of Pemberton Township, which she used to house underprivileged children visiting on weekends from urban North Jersey.^[4]
Cristiano further founded My Mother’s House Inc., a nonprofit which places homeless people in new job vacancies.^[4] Cristiano became the executive director of My Mother's House in 1988.^[4] She ran the nonprofit organization out of her Country Lake Estates retirement home, where she would house homeless clients until they could be placed into a job.^[4] Donald Trump and Trump Entertainment Resorts, which operates casinos in Atlantic City, were the first to hire her formerly homeless candidates.^[4] John Gillespie, the former supervisor of Pemberton Township, has noted that everyone participated in the Mother's House program ultimately received a permanent job.^[2]
Former New Jersey Governor Brendan Byrne appointed Sister Carmela as one of the founding members of the New Jersey Commission on the Status of Women.^[4] Governor Thomas Kean then reappointed her to the Commission once he became governor.^[4] In 1987, Governor Kean further awarded her the Garden State Humanitarian Award, becoming the first recipient of the honor.^[2]
She also taught adult continuing-education classes at Burlington County College.^[4] She spearheaded the Operation Undercover, which provided underwear to Kosovar refugees who were temporarily housed at Fort Dix.^[2] Within Burlington County, Sister Carmela served as president of the local chapter of Madonna Dell’Assunta as well as the Soroptimist International of Rancocas Valley.^[2] She also volunteered at Deborah Heart and Lung Center.
In a 2007 interview with The Philadelphia Inquirer, Sister Carmela dismissed suggestions that she was an activist, telling the reporter, "I am active in things that matter to me."^[4]
Sister Carmela Marie Cristiano died on August 1, 2011, at the age of 83. The Mass of Christian Burial was held at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Church in Whiting, New Jersey, with burial at Holy Family Cemetery in Convent Station, New Jersey.^[1][3]

 

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Gamini Goonesena, Sri Lankan cricketer died he was , 80.

Gamini Goonesena

(16 February 1931 – 1 August 2011)

 born in Colombo, was a Sri Lankan first-class cricketer prior to his country being granted Test status. He was educated at Royal College Colombo where he played in the Royal-Thomian encounter and thereafter at the University of Cambridge from 1954 to 1957.

Cricket career

A gifted allrounder who was a right-handed batsman and legbreak/googly bowler. He played first class cricket over a 19 year timespan, 1949–1968, representing 14 different teams during that period. His principal clubs were Nottinghamshire (94 matches between 1953 and 1964) where he twice completed the 'double' of 1000 runs/100wickets in a season, and Cambridge University (52 matches between 1954 and 1957) where he was the first Asian player to captain the side in his last year. As captain he scored 211 in the University match in 1957, still the highest individual score by a Cambridge player in the annual fixture, and then took 4–40 in Oxford second innings to secure a crushing victory for Cambridge by an innings and 186 runs.
He also played in 7 consecutive games for the Gentlemen v Players between 1954 and 1958, which still remains an all time record for an overseas player. He represented Ceylon against Pakistan in 1950 and again against an International X1 in 1968 before they obtained Test status as Sri Lanka in 1982. He also toured the West Indies twice with an E.W.Swanton international team in 1956 and with the International Cavaliers in 1965. He also appeared in 7 matches for the Australian state side New South Wales in their domestic Sheffield Shield competition between 1961 and 1964.
In his very last first class match, playing for the Free Foresters against Oxford University at The Parks in June 1968, he took 10–87 (5–38 & 5–49) to spearhead his teams 299 run victory. During the course of his first class career he played in a total of 194 matches, scoring 5751 runs (average 21.53) and taking 674 wickets (average 24.37). He also took 108 catches.

Later Developments

In 1965 he was appointed as Ceylon's representative to the ICC International Cricket Conference and subsequently managed the Sri Lankan Test side on a tour of India. He also played club cricket for Waverley District Cricket Club (now Eastern Suburbs District Cricket Club) in the 1970s. During the 1990s he became President of Colts CC, one of the oldest clubs on the island, and during this time he also worked as a Test Match commentator for Sri Lankan radio and Television. He retired in 2004 to live in Sydney, Australia and died in Canberra aged 80, on 1 August 2011.

 

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Chieko N. Okazaki, American Mormon women's leader, first non-Caucasian woman to hold a senior position in the LDS church, died from heart failure he was , 84.

Chieko Nishimura Okazaki

(October 21, 1926 – August 1, 2011)

 was the first counselor to Elaine L. Jack in the Relief Society general presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) from 1990 to 1997. She was the first non-Caucasian woman to serve as a member of the general presidency in one of the LDS Church's auxiliary organizations.^[1]
Okazaki was born and raised in Hawaii as a Buddhist, the daughter of Hawaii-born Japanese. At the age of fifteen she converted to the LDS Church. She married Edward Y. Okazaki, and they had two sons. By profession she was an educator and taught in Hawaii, Utah, and Colorado, and was also an elementary school principal. Edward Okazaki served in the United States Army during World War II. ^[2]
In 1961 Okazaki was appointed to the YWMIA board in the LDS Church and was the first non-Caucasian to serve in this position.^[1] From 1968 to 1971 she served with her husband as he served as the first president of the Japan–Okinawa Mission of the church and then the Japan Central Mission after the Japan–Okinawa Mission was split.^[3] The Japan Central Mission was based in Kobe.^[4]
In 1990, Okazaki was called to be the first counselor in the Relief Society general presidency. In that position, she became one of the first LDS Church leaders to address in a church setting the topic of sexual abuse.^[1]
Okazaki served as a member of the Southern Virginia University board of trustees.^[5] She was a frequent speaker at Brigham Young University's women's conference and other events sponsored by the LDS Church or organizations owned by the LDS Church. She wrote several books, most of which are geared to an audience of Latter-day Saint women.
Okazaki died of congestive heart failure in Salt Lake City, Utah, aged 84.^[1][6]

Publications

• Okazaki, Chieko N. (November 1991), "Rejoice in Every Good Thing", Ensign
• —— (1992), The Power of Charity, Shadow Mountain recording, ISBN 978-0-87579-644-4
• —— (May 1992), "Spit and Mud and Kigatsuku", Ensign
• —— (1993), Lighten Up!, Deseret Book, ISBN 978-0-87579-668-0
• —— (May 1993), "Cat's Cradle of Kindness", Ensign
• —— (1993), Healing from Sexual Abuse, Deseret Book recording, ISBN 978-0-87579-742-7
• —— (1993), Valuing People: Six Lessons in Leadership, Deseret Book recording, ISBN 978-0-87579-749-6
• —— (November 1993), "Strength in the Savior", Ensign
• —— (1993), Christmas Presence, Deseret Book recording, ISBN 978-0-87579-808-0
• —— (1994), Cat's Cradle, Bookcraft, ISBN 978-0-88494-904-6
• —— (1994), Shared Motherhood, Bookcraft, ISBN 978-0-88494-932-9
• —— (November 1994), "Rowing Your Boat", Ensign
• —— (1995), Aloha!, Deseret Book, ISBN 978-0-87579-979-7
• —— (November 1995), "A Living Network", Ensign
• —— (May 1996), "Baskets and Bottles", Ensign
• —— (November 1996), "Raised in Hope", Ensign
• —— (1997), Sanctuary, Deseret Book, ISBN 978-1-57345-154-3
• —— (1998), Disciples, Shadow Mountain, ISBN 978-1-57345-413-1
• —— (2002), Being Enough, Bookcraft, ISBN 978-1-57008-876-6
• —— (2004), Stars: Reflections on Christmas, Shadow Mountain, ISBN 978-1-59038-353-7
• —— (2008), What a Friend We Have in Jesus, Deseret Book, ISBN 978-1-59038-855-6

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Brian O'Leary, American scientist and NASA astronaut, died from cancer he was , 71.

Brian Todd O'Leary  was an American scientist, author, and former NASA astronaut died from cancer he was , 71. . He was a member of the sixth group of astronauts selected by NASA in August 1967. The members of this group of eleven were known as the scientist-astronauts, intended to train for the Apollo Applications Program - a follow-on to the Apollo Program, which was ultimately canceled. In later life he became an advocate of utilizing exotic energy sources to resolve humanity’s energy problems.

(January 27, 1940 – July 28, 2011)

Personal

O’Leary was born and raised in Boston, and credits a teenage visit to Washington, D.C. with inspiring the patriotism that drove his efforts to become an astronaut.^[1] Climbing the Matterhorn, running the Boston Marathon and becoming an Eagle Scout were among his pre-astronautic activities. O’Leary had two children.

Education

O’Leary graduated from Belmont High School, Belmont, Massachusetts, in 1957; received a bachelor of arts degree in physics from Williams College in 1961, a masters of arts in Astronomy from Georgetown University in 1964, and a doctor of philosophy in astronomy from the University of California at Berkeley in 1967.

Organizations

O’Leary became a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in 1975. Other organizations are: 1970-1976, secretary of the American Geophysical Union’s Planetology Section; 1977, team leader of the Asteroidal Resources Group, NASA Ames Summer Study on Space Settlements; 1976–1979, member of the nominating committee of the American Astronomical Society Division for Planetary Sciences; 1983–1985, chairman of the board of directors of the Institute for Security and Cooperation in Space; 1990, founding board member of the International Association for New Science; 2003 founding president of the New Energy Movement; 2007-, Fellow, World Innovation Foundation.

Astronaut program

While attending graduate school in astronomy at the University of California, Berkeley, O’Leary published several scientific papers on the Martian atmosphere.^[2] O’Leary’s Ph.D. thesis in 1967 was on the Martian surface.^[3] Soon after completing his Ph.D. thesis, O'Leary was the first astronaut specifically selected for a potential manned Mars mission when it was still in NASA's program plan projected for the 1980s as a follow-on to the Apollo lunar program.^[4] O’Leary was the only planetary scientist-astronaut in NASA’s astronaut corps during the Apollo program.^[5] O’Leary resigned from the astronaut program in April 1968, and cited several reasons for resigning in his The Making of an Ex-Astronaut, which included the cancellation of the Mars program in early 1968.

Academic career

After O’Leary’s resignation from NASA, Carl Sagan recruited him to teach at Cornell University in 1968, where he researched and lectured until 1971. While teaching at Cornell, he studied lunar mascons.^[6] O’Leary subsequently taught astronomy, physics, and science policy assessment at several academic institutions, including the University of California at Berkeley School of Law (1971–1972) Hampshire College (1972–75) and Princeton University (1976–1981).^[7]
O’Leary was a member of the Mariner 10 Venus-Mercury TV Science Team.^[8] The team received NASA’s group achievement award for its participation.^[9]
O’Leary authored several popular books and more than one hundred peer-reviewed articles in the fields of planetary science, astronautics, and science policy.^[10] He was one of the more visible scientists who participated in Gerard K. O'Neill and the L5 Society's plans for an orbiting city.^[11] O’Leary suggested that Earth-approaching asteroids and the moons of Mars would be the most accessible space-based resource for space colonies.^[12] O’Leary was among the earliest to coordinate observations and interpretations of stellar occultations by planetary satellites and asteroids.^[13] O’Leary also wrote and edited popular books on astronomy and astronautics.^[14] During the 1970s and 1980s, O’Leary was a regular contributor to the magazines Omni, Science Digest, New Scientist, Astronomy, and Sky and Telescope.

Political activities

O’Leary became politically active early in his career. He participated in a demonstration in Washington, D.C. in 1970, to protest the war in Cambodia. Richard Nixon administration officials invited O’Leary and his fellow Cornell professors into the White House to present their grievances and their meeting appeared as the lead story of CBS Evening News on May 9, 1970.^[15] O’Leary was Morris Udall’s energy advisor during his 1975-1976 campaign for U.S. president, and served under Udall as a special staff consultant on energy for the U.S. House Interior Committee subcommittee on energy and the environment in 1975-1976.^[16] O’Leary advised other U.S. presidential candidates, including George McGovern, Walter Mondale, Jesse Jackson, and Dennis Kucinich.
During those years, he also immersed himself in several controversies relating to NASA’s objectives, including its manned lunar landings, the Space Shuttle, and the weaponization of space.^[17] O’Leary promoted a joint manned mission to Mars between the U.S. and the Soviet Union.^[18] O’Leary twice traveled to the Soviet Union in the late 1980s to promote the peaceful exploration of space. O’Leary participated in a peace cruise along the Dnieper River in the Ukraine with the first Westerners to visit the area in decades.^[19]

Alternative Beliefs

A remote viewing experience in 1979^[20] and a near-death experience in 1982^[21] initiated O’Leary’s departure from orthodox science. After Princeton, O’Leary worked in the space industry at Science Applications International Corporation in Hermosa Beach, California, beginning in 1982.^[22] O’Leary refused to work on military space applications, which resulted in losing his position there in 1987.^[23]
Beginning in 1987, O’Leary increasingly explored unorthodox ideas, particularly the relationship between consciousness and science, and became widely known for his writings on “the frontiers of science, space, energy and culture.”^[24] He lectured extensively since the 1980s on science and consciousness, in places such as the Findhorn Foundation, Esalen Institute, Omega Institute, Unity Churches, Religious Science churches and Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Centres. He extensively traveled internationally during his investigations, which included visiting scientific laboratories and mystics such as Sathya Sai Baba. In the mid-1990s, O’Leary began to write about his investigations regarding innovative technologies that allegedly utilize energy sources that science does not currently recognize (also called new energy), and how those technologies can transform the planet and the human journey.^[25] O’Leary believed there is an extraterrestrial presence on Earth, its relationship to those potentially transformative technologies, and their conjoined organized suppression.^[26] O’Leary also participated in the Face on Mars issue.^[27]
In 2003, O’Leary founded the New Energy Movement.^[28] Shortly after his new energy colleague Eugene Mallove was murdered in 2004,^[29] O’Leary moved to Ecuador, where he resided for the rest of his life. He ontinued to travel and publicly lecture on the subject of new energy and planetary healing.^[30] In 2007, O’Leary presented a paper titled, "Renewable and Unconventional Energy for a Sustainable Future: Can We Convert in Time?", at the International Energy Conference and Exhibition in Daegu, S. Korea.^[31] With his artist wife Meredith Miller, in 2008 he co-established the Montesueños Eco-Retreat in Vilcabamba, Ecuador, which is devoted to “peace, sustainability, the arts and new science.”^[32] In 2009, O’Leary published the Energy Solution Revolution.^[33] In 2010, O’Leary published “The Turquoise Revolution”.^[34]

Declining Health and Death

O'Leary credited a natural anti-cancer salve named Cansema, made by American businessman, inventor, manufacturer and promoter of various herbal products Gregory Caton, with removing a skin cancer tumour on his back, contracted whilst in his 60s; he even wrote a testimonial for Caton to use in the promotion of this product. After having his second heart attack in 2010, he died at his home of intestinal cancer in Vilcabamba, Ecuador, soon after diagnosis.^{[citation neede}

 

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John Marburger, American physicist and presidential adviser, died from non-Hodgkin lymphoma he was , 70.

John Harmen Marburger, III was an American physicist who directed the Office of Science and Technology Policy in the administration of President George W. Bush, thus serving as the Science Advisor to the President. His tenure was marked by controversy died from non-Hodgkin lymphoma he was , 70.: he defended the administration against allegations that scientific evidence was being suppressed or ignored in policy decisions, but he has been credited with keeping the political effects of the September 11 attacks from harming science research, and with increasing awareness of the relationship between science and government. He also served as the President of Stony Brook University from 1980 until 1994, and director of Brookhaven National Laboratory from 1998 until 2001.

(February 8, 1941 – July 28, 2011)

Early life

Marburger was born on Staten Island, New York, to Virginia Smith and John H. Marburger Jr., and grew up in Severna Park, Maryland. He attended Princeton University, graduating in 1962 with a B.A. in Physics, followed by a Ph.D. in Applied Physics from Stanford University in 1967.^[1][3]

Academic career

After completing his education, he served as a professor of Physics and Electrical Engineering at the University of Southern California in 1966, specializing in the theoretical physics of nonlinear optics and quantum optics, and co-founded the Center for Laser Studies there. He rose to become chairman of the physics department in 1972, and then Dean of the College of Letters, Arts and Sciences in 1976. He was engaged as a public speaker on science, including hosting a series of educational television programs, and on campus issues, being designated the university's spokesperson during a scandal over preferential treatment of athletes.^[3][4]
In 1980, he left USC to become the third president of SUNY Stony Brook. At the time, state budget cuts were afflicting the university; he returned it to growth with increases in the university's science research funding from the federal government. He also presided over the founding of Stony Brook University Medical Center. In 1983, he was picked by New York Governor Mario Cuomo to chair a scientific fact-finding commission on the Shoreham Nuclear Power Plant, a job that required him to find common ground between the many viewpoints represented on the commission. The commission eventually recommended the closure of the plant, a course he personally disagreed with. In 1988, Marburger chaired the organization that oversaw construction of the ill-fated Superconducting Super Collider, and this experience is credited with convincing him of the influence government had in how science is done. During this time he also served as a trustee of Princeton University. He stepped down as President of Stony Brook University in 1994, and began doing research again as a member of the faculty there.^[1][3][4]
In January 1998, Marburger became president of Brookhaven Science Associates, which subsequently won a bid to operate Brookhaven National Laboratory for the federal government, and Marburger became the director of the lab. He took office after a highly publicized scandal in which tritium leaked from the lab's High Flux Beam Reactor, leading to calls by activists to shut down the lab. Rather than directly oppose the activists, Marburger created policies that improved the environmental management of the lab as well as community involvement and transparency. Marburger also presided over the commissioning of the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider, expanded the lab's program in medical imaging and neuroscience, and placed more emphasis on its technology transfer program.^[3][4]

Bush administration

In September 2001, Marburger became Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy under George W. Bush. His tenure was marked by controversy as he defended the Bush Administration from accusations that political influence was distorting scientific research in federal agencies and that scientific evidence was being suppressed or ignored in policy decisions, especially on the topics of abstinence-only birth control education, climate change policy, and stem cell research. Marburger defended the Bush Administration from these accusations, saying they were inaccurate or motivated by partisanship, especially on the issue of science funding levels. Marburger continued to be personally respected by many of his academic colleagues.^[1][5]
Marburger's tenure as Director was the longest in the history of that post. After the September 11 attacks, he helped to establish the DHS Directorate for Science and Technology within the new Department of Homeland Security. He has been called a central player opposing new restrictions of international scientific exchanges of people and ideas after the attacks. He later was responsible for reorienting the nation's space policy after the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster, and played an important part in the nation's re-entry into the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor program. Marburger was also known for his support of the emerging field of science of science policy, which seeks to analyze how science policy decisions affects a nation's ability to produce and benefit from innovation.^[3][5]
In February 2004, the Union of Concerned Scientists published a report^[6] accusing the Bush administration of manipulating science for political purposes, listing more than 20 alleged incidents of censoring scientific results or applying a litmus test in the appointment of supposedly scientific advisory panel members. In April 2004, Marburger published a statement^[7] rebutting the report and exposing errors and incomplete explanations in it, and stating that "evan when the science is clear—and often it is not—it is but one input into the policy process," but "in this Administation, science strongly informs policy." The Union of Concerned Scientists issued a revised version of their report after Marburger's statement was published. Marburger also called the reports conclusions illusory and the result of focusing on unrelated incidents within a vast government apparatus, and attributed the controversy as being related to the upcoming elections. It was noted that Marburger enjoyed a close personal relationship with President Bush, with White House Chief of Staff Andrew Card and Office of Management and Budget Director Joshua Bolten attesting to his active involvement within the administration.^[8][9]
Marburger responded to criticism of his support for Bush Administration policies in 2004, stating "No one will know my personal positions on issues as long as I am in this job. I am here to make sure that the science input to policy making is sound and that the executive branch functions properly with respect to its science and technology missions." On the topic of stem cell research, he in 2004 said that stem cells "offer great promise for addressing incurable diseases and afflictions. But I can’t tell you when a fertilized egg becomes sacred. That’s not my job. That’s not a science issue. And so whatever I think about reproductive technology or choice, or whatever, is irrelevant to my job as a science adviser."^[1] However, in February 2005, in a speech at the annual conference of the National Association of Science Writers, he stated, "Intelligent design is not a scientific theory.... I don't regard intelligent design as a scientific topic."^[10]
Sherwood Boehlert, the Republican chair of the House Committee on Science during most of Marburger's tenure, said that "the challenge he faced was serving a president who didn't really want much scientific advice, and who let politics dictate the direction of his science policy... and he was in the unenviable position of being someone who had earned the respect of his scientific colleagues while having to be identified with policies that were not science-based."^[5] On the other hand, Robert P. Crease, a colleague of his at Stony Brook University, characterized him as someone who "[went] to the White House as a scientist, not an advocate. He refused to weigh in on high-profile, politically controversial issues, but instead set about fixing broken connections in the unwieldy machinery by which the government approves and funds scientific projects.... Some bitterly criticized him for collaborating with the Bush administration. But he left the office running better than when he entered."^[4]

Later life

Marburger returned to Stony Brook University as faculty in 2009. He also served as Vice President for Research but stepped down on July 1, 2011. Marburger died Thursday, July 28, 2011, at his home in Port Jefferson, New York, after four years of treatment for non-Hodgkins lymphoma. He is survived by his wife, Carol.^[3]

 

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Ahmed Omed Khpulwak, Afghan journalist (BBC News), died from an explosion he was , 25.

Ahmad Omaid Khpalwak, also spelled as Ahmed Omed Khpulwak, was an Afghan journalist who worked for the Pajhwok Afghan News and as a freelance stringer for the BBC since 2008.^[1] Khpalwak was the third journalist frm Pajhwok to be killed in three years. He was the third BBC reporter to be killed in Afghanistan and the second BBC reporter to be killed in the War in Afghanistan.^[2]

  (1987? - 28 July 2011)

Biography

Career

Khpalwak began working for Pajhwok after completing his education in 2007, and he worked first as a freelancer and then later became staff.^[3] Khpalwak joined the staff of the BBC World Service as a journalist on May 1, 2008.^[2] He worked as a stringer for the BBC, based in Uruzgan Province, and was paid for each story which was published or broadcast by the BBC.^[2] He often reported for BBC Pashto on events in southern Afghanistan.^[2] Khpalwak simultaneously also worked for the Pajwak Afghan news agency.^[2]
His last two stories for Pajhwok Afghan News, before he died on July 28 in a major attack in Tarin Kowt, capital of Uruzgan province, were about an attack on police checkpoints in which both Taliban and police were killed, and an interview with a would-be suicide bomber. Few of his 24 years of life saw any kind of peace in Afghanistan.^[1]

Personal

Khpalwak, who was twenty-four years old, was survived by his parents, his elder brother, three sisters, and his wife and three month old daughter.
After Khpalwak's death, Khpalwak's father, Ghulam Nabi, did not accept offers by the United States to compensate the family Omaid's death and wanted the investigation to continue. The family members sought asylum in Australia for fear of retaliation. Abdul Mujeeb Khalvatgar, executive director of NAI SOMA, said the capital did not offer the Khpalwaks anonymity because it was small and he believed the Khpalwaks were in danger.^[4]

Death of Ahmad Omaid Khpalwak
Part of the War in Afghanistan (2001–present)
Tarin Kowt
Location	Tarin Kowt, Afghanistan
Date	28 July 2011 (UTC+04:30)
Attack type	Suicide bombing
Weapon(s)	7 bombs
Deaths	21
Injured	38
Assailants	Taliban insurgents

Background

Three suicide bombers and three accomplices bombed several government buildings as well as a broadcasting station in which a total of 21 civilians were killed and 38 more injured. The dead included 10 children, three police, and one Afghan reporter. Afghan and US-led NATO forces engaged responded and killed all insurgents. In the shooting, Pajhwok Journalist Ahmad Omaid Khpalwak was killed by a group of U.S. soldiers while they were clearing the broadcasting station. The incident occurred over a 5 hour period.^[5][6][7]

Death

Khpalwak was killed by American ISAF troops^[8] 28 July 2011 in Tarin Kowt, Afghanistan, after Taliban insurgents attacked government facilities, as well as the state broadcasting station Radio and Television of Afghanistan,^[1] in Uruzgan's provincial capital.^[2] The New York Times called the attack one of the "most audacious surprise attacks" ever undertaken by the Taliban.^[9]
Reporters Without Borders and BBC News called for an investigation after Khpalwak was killed at the broadcasting station.^[10][11] The journalist's brother Ahmad Jawid Khpalwak believed he was reaching for his press card when he was shot. The Los Angeles Times wrote about text messages that Khpalwak sent his brother in the minutes before he was killed. "Death is approaching," he messaged. "I am hiding;" and a short time later wrote, "If I die, pray for me."^[1][12]
A NATO investigation revealed 8 Septemember that an American soldier had killed Khpalwak.^[8] Kphalwak's death happened while he was reporting for BBC Pashto about the Taliban attack.^[1][2] The ISAF arrived at an attacked building and was making sure that there were no Taliban still inside. An American soldier discovered Khpalwak hiding in a bathroom and saw Khpalwak reaching for something when it was mostly likely his press card. The soldier thought that Khpalwak could have been a suicide bomber and trying to reach for a device that would set off a bomb before he shot 20 rounds at Khpalwak with an M-4.^[3][8] The investigation also said Khpalwak held a press identification card in his hand.^[1]
The investigation concluded, "... the ISAF member involved in this incident complied with the laws of armed conflict and rules of engagement and acted reasonably under the circumstances."^[10]

Context

While the intended targets of the Taliban attack were Uruzgan's Governor and a militia leader named Matiullah Khan, the Taliban also stormed the offices of local radio and television stations, leading to Khpalwak being killed while hiding in a bathroom by American troops that came to sweep out the Taliban.^[2]
Local reporters are the ones who are in the most danger, according to press activist Abdul Mujeeb Khalvatgar, executive director the NAI Supporting Open Media in Afghanistan.^[4]

Impact

Khpalwak is the third Pajhwok reporter and the third BBC reporter to be killed in Afghanistan. Working for the BBC, Mirwais Jalil died in Kabul in the civil war of the 1990s. During the War in Afghanistan, Abdul Samad Rohani was killed by an unknown gunman in Lashkargah, Helmand Province June 2008.^[13] Like Khpalwak, Rohani worked for both Pajhwok and the BBC Word News. Pajhwok reporter Janullah Hashimzada was killed in the remote Khyber area August 2009.^[14]

Reactions

The incident raised continuing concers about the civilian casualties in the War in Afghanistan.
The Los Angeles Times said, "The incident points up the daily dangers faced by Afghans who work for foreign organizations, as well as Afghan civilians in general, particularly those living in a broad swath of Afghanistan's restive south."^[12]
Peter Horrocks, director of BBC Global News, said: "Ahmed Omed's death further highlights the great dangers facing journalists who put their lives on the line to provide vital news from around the world. It is essential that journalists are given the best possible protection whilst reporting in dangerous situations so that the world can hear their stories."
Reporters Without Borders said, "This mishap has highlighted the constant danger for civilians and journalists, who are often at the center of the fighting." The press fredom and safety organization held NATO and the Taliban responsible for Khpalwak's death.^[10]

 

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