Washington: US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and USAID Administrator Raj Shah on Thursday condemned the suicide attack in Afghanistan that killed one of its bright Foreign Service officers, but vowed to continue with the developmental work in the war-torn country.
The USAID Foreign Service Officer Ragaei Abdelfattah was killed along with three ISAF service members and an Afghan civilian, besides injuring a State Department Foreign Service Officer.
"Ragaei's work over the last year was critical to our efforts to support Afghanistan's political, economic, and security transitions and was an example of the highest standards of service," Hillary said in a statement.
"With the work of people such as Ragaei, the civilian surge we launched in Afghanistan in 2009 has made a tremendous impact, strengthening the capacity of the Afghan government and laying a foundation for long-term sustainable development. Though we are shocked and saddened by this loss and will miss Ragaei, our efforts will continue," Hillary said.
Sending his deepest condolences to the family of Ragaei, the USAID Administrator, Raj Shah, said this is a testament to the deep commitment and sacrifice of the dedicated staff who serve in conflict countries like Afghanistan around the world.
PTI
First Published: Friday, August 10, 2012, 00:49