Family of American slain in Yemen return home

By Associated Press,

Sunday, March 25, 2012

The father of slain American Joel Shrum says Shrum's wife and children have returned home safely to the U.S. from Yemen.

Al-Qaida's Yemen branch claimed responsibility for Shrum's death last Sunday, saying he was trying to spread Christianity in the mainly Muslim Arab nation.

The 29-year-old Shrum, of Mount Joy, Pa., was gunned down in Taiz, where he had been living with his wife and two sons. He was studying Arabic and teaching English at a language institute. Shrum's parents, of Harrisburg, Pa., said he went to Yemen to learn Arabic, not to proselytize.

Shrum's father, James Shrum, said Saturday in an email that he does not know yet when his son's body will arrive home. He said a PNC Bank fund has been set up for his son's family.