A Sad Note, Sorry [#22]
Hi. I'm just back from Beijing, where I was on assignment. On Monday I was alone in my hotel room, having awakened before dawn to cover some diplomatic talks when I read this line on my screen:
"David Gilkey and our Afghan translator Zabihullah Tamanna were killed today near Marjah, in southern Afghanistan."
This is the first time NPR has ever lost a journalist on the job. And David Gilkey is the first American civilian casualty in Afghanistan. He was, quite simply, NPR's very best. His photography was a window to the world and its humanity. We have lost our hero, our friend, our light. I can't believe I won't get to see him again.
See his work. Read stories about Gilkey being Gilkey. Hear his voice.
As for our fixer-translator, Zabi, he was among the wide network of local journalists we NPR foreign correspondents rely on in our work, me included. Zabi's wife wants the world to know "he was the finest man."
Working through the sadness and grief. There's a lot to process.
Please hug your loved ones. Hug 'em tight.
Until next time,
Elise