Carleton graduate and Canadian diplomat Annemarie Desloges was killed in the Westgate Mall attack in Nairobi, Kenya Sept. 21.
Desloges, 29, and her husband Robert Munk were both in Nairobi as foreign diplomats working in Kenya, according to a statement from Tim Edwards, president of the Professional Association of Foreign Service Officers.
Munk was injured in the attack, and has since been released from hospital, according to the Toronto Star.
Edwards said in a statement that his association is devastated by the loss of one of their own.
“Annemarie was one of our bright young lights, and hers was a career brimming with promise,” he stated. “We grieve the loss not only of a warm and intelligent friend and colleague, but a lifetime’s potential tragically unfilled.”
Edwards said Desloges was the first Canadian diplomat killed on posting since 2006.
In an interview with CBC, former Carleton student Samar Abdi said she was inside the mall at the time of the attack, and she realized she needed to seek shelter.
“We went into a back room which was only designated for employees . . . Everyone was completely distraught,” she said in the CBC interview. “Shortly after that, a bunch of people came inside, and then we decided that we would just lock the door just in case because the gunmen sounded like they were fairly close to us.”
Abdi said the entire ordeal felt like something out of a movie.
“I never expected myself to be in that sort of situation. However, we just had to sort of remain calm and not let our emotions take over,” she said.
Carleton president Roseann Runte said in a statement that university flags will fly half-mast for Desloges’ death.
“Our sincere condolences go out to their families as well as to the faculty, staff, students, and alumni who knew them and worked with them,” she stated.
Runte said Desloges studied international affairs and Munk studied political science.
“We are truly an international university and our students and faculty are dedicated to serving people around the globe,” she stated. “We will remember Ms. Desloges with fondness and respect.”
The official death toll from the attack is 61 civilians and six security officers, according to a press release from the Kenyan government.
