Army Concludes Lesbian's Mysterious Death in Afghanistan a Suicide

The investigation surrounding Ciara Durkin, a lesbian serving in Afghanistan whose mysterious death (she was found with a single bullet in her head, lying near the church where she worshipped on the secure Bagram Airfield) spurred calls for investigation from Massachusetts (her home state) Senator John Kerry, has concluded, according to her family, and it doesn't sound like they buy it:

They released a statement on their website: "The Durkin family has received the Army's final report into Ciara's death, with their conclusion that she took her own life. We are very upset and saddened by their conclusion. We have borne an extraordinary amount of pain over the past nine months, compounded by a protracted and at times ambiguous investigation. We now need time and privacy to grieve and let our Ciara finally rest in peace. Ar dheis Dé go raibh a hanam.

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Family and friends of U.S. soldier Ciara Durkin, who was slain in Afghanistan under mysterious circumstances, still don't know why she was killed, but they don't think it was because of her sexuality: "Those close to her do not believe that Durkin was targeted because of her sexual orientation. Durkin had talked with her friends, before she enlisted, about the Army's 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' policy, which allows gays and lesbians to serve as long as they do not disclose their sexual orientation or act upon it. She was, they recall, not particularly concerned about being found out. Durkin apparently did not reveal that she was a lesbian while in the service and, according to one soldier who knew her, her unit members were as shocked by her death as the discovery that she was a lesbian."

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Towleroad Guide to the Tube #184

CIARA DURKIN: CNN coverage of the slain lesbian soldier serving in Afghanistan. The circumstances surrounding her death remain a mystery.

DEBBIE HARRY: Her performance on yesterday's Today show.

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Check out our previous guides to the Tube here!

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Mystery Surrounds Shooting Death of Lesbian Soldier

Mystery surrounds the shooting death of Ciara Durkin, a lesbian serving in Afghanistan with troops from the Massachusetts National Guard.

The Boston Globe reports: "The Defense Department says it is investigating Durkin's death, which it described as a 'non-combat-related incident.' Durkin's family says Army officials have told them she was found with a single bullet in her head, lying near the church where she worshipped on the secure Bagram Airfield. The Army has not publicly disclosed whether a weapon was found near her body. The Massachusetts National Guard initially reported that Durkin was killed in action, though a Guard spokesman later said the term meant only that Durkin was serving in Afghanistan at the time."

US Senators John F. Kerry and Edward M. Kennedy and US Representative William D. Delahunt have made special requests to the Defense Department for answers about Durkin, a resident of Quincy, Massachusetts.

Durkin's sister, Fiona Canavan, one of nine siblings in the family, has concerns that the shooting could have been related to Durkin's sexuality: "Ciara was a lesbian, and that's bound to come out. It is possible that someone over there found that out, and, you know, maybe they were very homophobic."

Canavan added: "She did say to us that she had concerns about things she was seeing when she was over there. She told us if anything happened to her, that we were to investigate it."

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