Saturday, August 9, 2008

A Sad Day

Today, we received sad news of a tragic event that happened yesterday in Beijing. A 47-year-old Chinese man attacked a couple of Americans at the DrumTower, a 1,300 year old relic of imperial China and a popular tourist spot. The Americans, family members of a coach for the US men's indoor volleyball team, were stabbed by the man who afterwards jumped from the Drum Tower to his own death. One of the victims died in the attack and the other was seriously injured.

My heart, thoughts, and prayers go out to the surviving victim and the family.

In the wake of this attack, we have been instructed to be extra careful and vigilant when venturing out in public during the duration of the games. Nonetheless, China remains a very safe country with a very low rate of violent crime, even in large cities like Beijing.

We do not know at this time if this was Olympic related or politically motivated. The victims were not wearing anything that would set them apart from any other tourist as American or any other nationality.

Again, my thoughts and prayers are with the family, the vicitm, and the rest of the US delegation to the Olympics. May the Lord protect us all and carry us home safely...

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