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CNN Live At Daybreak
Four Days After Americans Killed in Yemen, 25 Colleagues Returning to Work
Aired January 03, 2003 - 05:06 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Well, turning now to the war on terror, first in Yemen. Four days after three Americans were killed by a suspected Islamic militant, 25 of the victims' hospital colleagues are returning to work.
CNN's Rula Amin joins us by video phone from Jiblah with the story -- Rula.
RULA AMIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Fredricka, we're standing here at the Baptist Hospital in Jiblah and you can see behind me the open door is where the assailant, a 32-year-old Islamic extremist, went into -- from that door into another room, where you see the door is closed. There he shot dead three American missionaries, including one doctor and the director of the hospital.
Now, with me here is Lee Hixon. Lee is the deputy director of the hospital here. He's American. And you shared that office with Bill. You were going to be there. You could have been there in that office. How do you feel?
LEE HIXON, DEPUTY DIRECTOR, BAPTIST HOSPITAL: Well, I haven't really given that too much thought. We've been very busy these past few days.
AMIN: How does the rest of the staff -- there are about 28 international staffers here -- how did this affect them?
HIXON: Well, the Jiblah Baptist Hospital family is a remarkable group of people. Their faith is in the lord, their identity is in Christ and they are strongly loyal.
AMIN: Are people scared? Are they packing? Are they going to leave?
HIXON: No, a majority of the group that went to Sanaa for a few days to grieve and to comfort one another, they are coming back today.
AMIN: Including your wife and your two children?
HIXON: Yes, they will be back today.
AMIN: Aren't you concerned? I mean this, there's, this was a serious, serious crime and people were killed. Can you still afford to bring your family here?
HIXON: Yes, we love the people here very, very much and they love us very much. God put a super human love in your heart for people group and my wife and my children love the Yemeni people especially here in Jiblah very, very much.
AMIN: Didn't that change with the attack?
HIXON: Oh, absolutely not. This is a love that is not a human love, it's the love that comes from god.
AMIN: What has been the reaction from the people here in Jiblah?
HIXON: Well, just a few minutes ago I was talking to one of the workers here, one of the maintenance workers, and he said -- and I think this epitomizes the feeling of not just the workers in the hospital, but the entire Jiblah community -- he said Mr. Bill, (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
AMIN: And what do you think, what is going to happen with the hospital here? Are you going to reopen? The staffers are coming back today. Are there going to be extra security measures?
HIXON: Inshala (ph), god willing, but -- that the hospital will be opened. We are just waiting for word from government officials and, yes, our desire and our hope is that the hospital would continue to serve the poor people here in the Jiblah area.
AMIN: Thank you very much.
That was Lee Hixon, the deputy director of the Baptist hospital here in Jiblah -- Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: Rula, is the commitment about the same among the Americans there or is there any talk of some deciding to leave Yemen as a result of what happened?
AMIN: Most of the staffers say they are going to stay. This hospital, before the attack, had released all of its patients because it was in a transition period where the hospital was going to be turned over to the government and the staffers here were going to stay as staffers and taking the administration responsibilities to give it away to the government here. And that is still going to go ahead.
As you heard, Lee is going to stay here, along with his family and along with many of the staffers -- Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: All right, Rula Amin from Jiblah, Yemen, thank you very much.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Returning to Work>
Aired January 3, 2003 - 05:06 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Well, turning now to the war on terror, first in Yemen. Four days after three Americans were killed by a suspected Islamic militant, 25 of the victims' hospital colleagues are returning to work.
CNN's Rula Amin joins us by video phone from Jiblah with the story -- Rula.
RULA AMIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Fredricka, we're standing here at the Baptist Hospital in Jiblah and you can see behind me the open door is where the assailant, a 32-year-old Islamic extremist, went into -- from that door into another room, where you see the door is closed. There he shot dead three American missionaries, including one doctor and the director of the hospital.
Now, with me here is Lee Hixon. Lee is the deputy director of the hospital here. He's American. And you shared that office with Bill. You were going to be there. You could have been there in that office. How do you feel?
LEE HIXON, DEPUTY DIRECTOR, BAPTIST HOSPITAL: Well, I haven't really given that too much thought. We've been very busy these past few days.
AMIN: How does the rest of the staff -- there are about 28 international staffers here -- how did this affect them?
HIXON: Well, the Jiblah Baptist Hospital family is a remarkable group of people. Their faith is in the lord, their identity is in Christ and they are strongly loyal.
AMIN: Are people scared? Are they packing? Are they going to leave?
HIXON: No, a majority of the group that went to Sanaa for a few days to grieve and to comfort one another, they are coming back today.
AMIN: Including your wife and your two children?
HIXON: Yes, they will be back today.
AMIN: Aren't you concerned? I mean this, there's, this was a serious, serious crime and people were killed. Can you still afford to bring your family here?
HIXON: Yes, we love the people here very, very much and they love us very much. God put a super human love in your heart for people group and my wife and my children love the Yemeni people especially here in Jiblah very, very much.
AMIN: Didn't that change with the attack?
HIXON: Oh, absolutely not. This is a love that is not a human love, it's the love that comes from god.
AMIN: What has been the reaction from the people here in Jiblah?
HIXON: Well, just a few minutes ago I was talking to one of the workers here, one of the maintenance workers, and he said -- and I think this epitomizes the feeling of not just the workers in the hospital, but the entire Jiblah community -- he said Mr. Bill, (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
AMIN: And what do you think, what is going to happen with the hospital here? Are you going to reopen? The staffers are coming back today. Are there going to be extra security measures?
HIXON: Inshala (ph), god willing, but -- that the hospital will be opened. We are just waiting for word from government officials and, yes, our desire and our hope is that the hospital would continue to serve the poor people here in the Jiblah area.
AMIN: Thank you very much.
That was Lee Hixon, the deputy director of the Baptist hospital here in Jiblah -- Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: Rula, is the commitment about the same among the Americans there or is there any talk of some deciding to leave Yemen as a result of what happened?
AMIN: Most of the staffers say they are going to stay. This hospital, before the attack, had released all of its patients because it was in a transition period where the hospital was going to be turned over to the government and the staffers here were going to stay as staffers and taking the administration responsibilities to give it away to the government here. And that is still going to go ahead.
As you heard, Lee is going to stay here, along with his family and along with many of the staffers -- Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: All right, Rula Amin from Jiblah, Yemen, thank you very much.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Returning to Work>
