US Student Andrew Pochter Killed During Violent Clashes in Egypt
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Handout/Kenyon College(ALEXANDRIA, Egypt) — An American college student was killed in Alexandria, Egypt, during violent clashes between government supporters and opponents, family members and U.S. officials confirmed Saturday.
Andrew Driscoll Pochter, a 21-year-old student from Chevy Chase, Md., was watching a protest as a bystander Friday when he was stabbed by a protester, his family said in a statement.
“He went to Egypt because he cared profoundly about the Middle East, and he planned to live and work there in the pursuit of peace and understanding,” Pochter’s family said in the statement. “Andrew was a wonderful young man looking for new experiences in the world and finding ways to share his talents while he learned.”
Pochter had been working in Egypt as an intern at American educational non-profit AMIDEAST, according to Kenyon College in Gambier, Ohio, where he was a rising juror.
Pochter’s family said he was spending the summer in Egypt teaching English to 7- and 8-year-old children and was working on improving his Arabic.
At Kenyon College, Pochter had served as a student leader of the campus Jewish organization, Hillel, according to student newspaper The Kenyon Collegian.
His family said he had planned to study in Jordan in the spring.
Pochter’s roommate in Alexandria told ABC News Pochter had been in the city since at least the beginning of June.
State Department spokeswoman Marie Harf, who was traveling with Secretary of State John Kerry, said the State Department was providing consular assistance.
Tensions have been rising in recent weeks across Egypt, as Egyptians prepare for the worst ahead of a major anti-Morsi demonstration planned for Sunday.
Six people, including Pochter and one other person’s on Friday, have been killed in clashes this week.
On Friday, the State Department warned Americans to defer non-essential travel to Egypt and authorized the departure of some of its non-emergency employees and family members.
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