Slain Korean brings grief to nation;

Slain Korean brings grief to nation; He had the passion of mission in Iraq, says Korean Christian leaders.

Seoul – Koreans mourned Kim Sun–il through the weekend as the decapitated hostage was finally returned to his motherland from Iraq, four days after he was slain by militants linked to al–Qaida.

His bereaved family wailed as Kim's coffin, draped in the taegeukgi, the national flag, arrived at a hospital in his hometown Busan on saturday night.

Kim Sun–il worked as a translator, but being a very pious christian, he also wanted to carry on evangelism in Muslim countries like Iraq. He wished to be a preacher so that he studies theology in Kyung Sung Seminary.

[pic:PAYING TRIBUTE – Citizens pay tribute to Kim Sun–il in a candlelight vigil in Seoul on Saturday.]