Cape Town - The British government has joined in on the desperate bid to repatriate the bodies of a South African family slain in a terrorist attack in Afghanistan.
Dr Hannelie Groenewald’s world was turned upside down on Saturday when she arrived at her home in Kabul to find that her husband, son and daughter had been executed by Taliban militants.
Their home had been torched, with everything inside, including identity documents, going up in flames.
On Tuesday morning, her sister, Riana du Plessis, who lives in Pretoria, told the Cape Argus the British consulate in the Afghan city was helping the devastated mother bring the bodies of her family home.
On Monday night, Groenewald told Beeld : “I have peace in my heart. I know where my husband and children are.”
Du Plessis said on Monday night her sister received the first good news since the attack.
One of her dogs, which had run from her home as it was burnt to the ground, had been found by a neighbour.
“They were reunited… It’s at least one good thing.”
On Monday, Du Plessis described how Groenewald’s husband, Werner, had triedto protect his two children before they were shot dead by the Taliban.
“They shot Werner in his office, in the leg, and then he ran upstairs to go try and protect his children, Rodé and Jean-Pierre,” said Du Plessis.
Minutes later, the family was dead.
Du Plessis burst into tears on the telephone as she described how her family was executed.
They had moved to Afghanistan years ago.
They were due to return to South Africa for Christmas.
Now the homecoming will be a bitter moment for the wife and mother who must bury her husband and two children.
Werner, a volunteer with the Partnership in Academics and Development, was working from home.”Three of them (the insurgents) entered the house and they were disguised as policemen - one was a suicide bomber - and the other two had guns in their hands,” said Du Plessis.
They first shot Groenewald in the leg before he ran upstairs, and then fired shots in the basement, where staff members were.
The attack went on for four hours.
“They took people hostage… and then they went upstairs after Werner again.
“They shot Werner again and the children. That’s where they died,”.
After the attack, they set the house alight.
Hannelie returned from work at a nearby hospital to find her house engulfed in flames.
She had lost everything.
Her family had bled to death in her son’s room, her pets killed in the inferno and her identity documents going up in smoke.
“She saw the three bodies of her family taken out of the house and put into the ambulance,” said Du Plessis.
According to the Partnership, the other staff members emerged injured.
Du Plessis said: “They thought Werner was a missionary trying to convert Muslims to Christians, but Werner was not. He was an aid worker there to uplift Afghanistan.”
Cape Argus