Funeral of doctor shot on Afghanistan aid trip

The funeral of murdered British aid worker Dr Karen Woo, 36, shot dead with nine colleagues in Afghanistan on August 5, will be held at her home in Stevenage tomorrow.

Dr Woo, right, who was due to marry this month, was killed by insurgents who lined up the workers and executed them.

She was in the Koran Wa Munjan district of Badakhshan working for the International Assistance Mission providing medical care to remote villagers in the country.

The murders have been described as the worst attack on aid workers in 30 years.

Philip French, a friend of Karen Woo who will be reading a eulogy at her funeral, said: "My feelings are of deep sadness to have lost such an amazing person at the prime of her life with so much more to give. I will miss her contagious energy and enthusiasm, her sense of fun and her burning desire to put the needs of others ahead of her own. I feel humbled by her passing but also a huge sense of pride in what she achieved during her 36 years and honoured to have been a part of her life for the last few years."

Close friends and family will attend the funeral near Stevenage tomorrow, and the family has asked for the media to respect their privacy.

Family and friends have also established the Karen Woo Foundation, found online at www.karenwoofoundation.com, a charity in memory of Dr Woo's life that will continue her work.

In October, a fashion show that Dr Woo was involved in organising, named Made in Afghanistan, will be held in Baywater in her memory.