A Muslim militant connected to the 2002 murders of Alabama missionary and medical doctor Martha Myers and two other Southern Baptist missionaries in Yemen was executed Nov. 27.
Ali al-Jarallah was blindfolded and shot in the courtyard of the central prison in San’a, Yemen’s capital, according to The Associated Press and other news services.
Al-Jarallah was convicted and sentenced to death in 2003 for plotting the medical workers’ deaths and the assassination of a prominent national politician, Yemeni Socialist Party leader Jarallah Omar.
Yemeni authorities said Al-Jarallah planned the Dec. 30, 2002, attack on the former Jibla Baptist Hospital carried out by gunman Abed Abdul Razak Kamel.
Kamel walked into the hospital compound that day and shot and killed Myers, hospital director William Koehn and purchasing agent Kathleen Gariety. A pharmacist was seriously wounded but later recovered.
Kamel, also convicted and sentenced to death for the murders, remains in prison. No date has been set for his execution. He admitted in court to coordinating the attack with al-Jarallah.
Myers’ father, Ira Myers, a member of Dalraida Baptist Church, Montgomery, in Montgomery Baptist Association, told The Birmingham News, “My concern is more for his salvation than his death. I have no hate in my heart. … But when you commit a crime, although you may be forgiven completely, you still have a punishment to deal with.”
Gunman still in prison
Yemeni officials believe both are tied to the al-Qaida terrorist network. Police reported finding audiotapes of al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden in Kamel’s home after the murders.
The Jibla hospital provided care for thousands of people in the impoverished Middle Eastern nation for more than 30 years after it was started by Southern Baptist workers.
Reopened in early 2003 by the Yemeni government’s health ministry, it continues its healing work under the name Peace Hospital.
For the full story on Martha Myers’ death and more information about the Jibla hospital, visit www.thealabamabaptist.org and use the keywords Martha Myers or Jibla for the search. (BP)
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