A British aid worker being held hostage in Afghanistan has been killed by captors during an attempt to rescue her, Foreign Secretary William Hague said.
Linda Norgrove, 36, originally from Sutherland in the Scottish Highlands, was kidnapped by militants in Kunar province on September 26, alongside three Afghan nationals.
A decision was made on Friday to send troops in to free her "given the danger she was in", Mr Hague said in a statement.
It is thought that no British forces were involved in the rescue attempt.
A former United Nations employee, Ms Norgrove was working for the firm Development Alternatives Inc at the time of her kidnap.
Based in Jalalabad, she supervised reconstruction programmes in the eastern region of Afghanistan funded by the US government.
She was abducted by insurgents as she travelled in a convoy of two vehicles in Kunar province.
Local police chased the kidnappers but lost them after a brief firefight.
The three Afghan nationals were released last week, but Ms Norgrove continued to be held amid growing concern for her life.
Mr Hague said that allies were tipped off where the Scottish hostage was being held and that "given the danger she was facing, her best chance of safe release was to act on that information".
A British aid worker being held hostage in Afghanistan has been killed by captors during an attempt to rescue her, Foreign Secretary William Hague said.
Linda Norgrove, 36, originally from Sutherland in the Scottish Highlands, was kidnapped by militants in Kunar province on September 26, alongside three Afghan nationals.
A decision was made on Friday to send troops in to free her "given the danger she was in", Mr Hague said in a statement.
It is thought that no British forces were involved in the rescue attempt.
A former United Nations employee, Ms Norgrove was working for the firm Development Alternatives Inc at the time of her kidnap.
Based in Jalalabad, she supervised reconstruction programmes in the eastern region of Afghanistan funded by the US government.
She was abducted by insurgents as she travelled in a convoy of two vehicles in Kunar province.
Local police chased the kidnappers but lost them after a brief firefight.
The three Afghan nationals were released last week, but Ms Norgrove continued to be held amid growing concern for her life.
Mr Hague said that allies were tipped off where the Scottish hostage was being held and that "given the danger she was facing, her best chance of safe release was to act on that information".