American hostage killed in Yemen

[Bosonic]

Source: AP

SANAA, Yemen (AP) — An American photojournalist held by al-Qaida militants in Yemen has been killed in a failed rescue attempt, his sister said Saturday.

Lucy Somers told The Associated Press that she learned of her 33-year-old brother Luke Somers' death from FBI agents. There was no immediate comment from Washington, nor from security officials in Yemen's capital, Sanaa.

"We ask that all of Luke's family members be allowed to mourn in peace," Lucy Somers said.

Yemen's local al-Qaida branch, Al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula, posted a video Thursday that showed Somers, threatening to kill him in three days if the United States didn't meet the group's demands, which weren't specified. He was kidnapped in September 2013 from Sanaa.

Read more: http://bigstory.ap.org/article/b7a0e4365e8546b88caa26496557eabd/drone-kills-9-alleged-al-qaida-fighters-yemen

[951-Riverside]

1. This is the outcome I expected after they openly announced a failed rescue attempt.

Why would they do that anyway?

[riversedge]

2. I imagine the US wanted the world to know we will

at least try to get our citizens free--even if failed. We have been criticized by many for not giving into the demands of the terrorists (who usually want cash-or exchange of prisoners). IMHO

[braddy]

3. There may have been no choice but to risk it

it may have been a hail Mary mission, the important thing to remember is that for the soldiers, it was an incredible mission behind enemy lines, where they could all die.

[GeorgeGist]

4. I think Somer's death is more important to remember.

[TwilightGardener]

6. Yemen participated in the first raid and initially US involvement wasn't revealed.

But I think AQ was on to us trying to rescue him...after we showed up to try to rescue him....that kind of blew our cover, don'tcha think?

[okaawhatever]

7. He was going to be killed today anyway. They attempted to rescue him knowing that he was likely

dead if they didn't succeed so there wasn't much to lose. I read another story that said they had intel he was to be killed today so I think they had information that the captors were going to make good on their promise to kill him.

[951-Riverside]

8. My issue is with them announcing the failed rescue attempt before he was killed.

That announcement immediately sealed his fate IMO.

[okaawhatever]

9. That didn't happen. He died on a navy ship after the rescue. He was shot during the rescue but the

Special Forces guys got him out of there. He died on a naval ship in the region where they were performing surgery. There is another article with more info including that a South African died also. That article is at HuffPo.

[TwilightGardener]

5. Sad. Thanks to our special forces who put their lives on the line to do this--

and they did manage to kill some of the captors, so there's that.