Soldier ‘in fear for his life’ killed aid worker

Giving a narrative verdict at the end of an inquest into Ms Norgrove’s death, Wiltshire coroner David Ridley also said the soldier, who threw a grenade in the compound where she was being held, had “acted unaware of Linda’s presence”, having had to “make a critical decision in a fraction of a second”.

In a statement released after the verdict, Ms Norgrove’s family said the inquest in Trowbridge had confirmed what they already knew.

The couple added: “A series of chance events all going the wrong way and an error of judgment by one of the special forces resulted in our daughter’s death.

“She was a lovely girl, had so much to offer and was such a force for good in the world. The whole affair is a tragedy.”

Ms Norgrove, 36, was seized during an ambush in Kunar province on September 26 last year.

Mr Ridley described in his verdict how the US troops had come under enemy fire as they mounted the rescue operation in conditions of poor visibility.

“Time was of the essence as regards reaching the target buildings were it was believed Linda was being held,” he said.

“At no stage during the operation did any of the ground operatives or tactical commanders using aerial surveillance become aware that Linda was now in the open air and that she was with (a) third shot captor.”

A post-mortem examination revealed a bullet wound to Ms Norgrove’s right lower leg but this was discovered to have been caused either by the bullet passing through her captor or it ricocheting onto her.

It did not contribute to or cause her death, the coroner said, but was probably what caused her to collapse when her captor was shot.

The soldier who then threw the grenade believed that two insurgents the forces had shot may still be alive and pose a threat, he added.