Niedringhaus funeral

Around 600 mourners came to Anja Niedringhaus's funeral service in the medieval Corvey monastery in Höxter in the German region of East Westphalia.

The priest read out a letter from AP special correspondent Kathy Gannon, who was severely injured in the April 4 attack that killed 48-year-old Niedringhaus. Gannon, 60, and Niedringhaus often teamed up on assignments. Gannon's letter recalled some of her last words: "I am so happy."

"You were so happy," the letter read. "Your heart knew no bounds. You wanted to help everyone."

Associated Press Senior Vice President and Executive Editor, Kathleen Carroll, said Niedringhaus loved to capture calm when there was chaos all around her.

"And I believe that is why her pictures from terrible places resonated with so many people around the world," Carroll said. "She found their dignity. She found the quiet human moments that connected people in great strife to all the rest of us around the world."

Niedringhaus was killed when an Afghan police unit commander walked up to the car where she was sitting in the back seat and opened fire after yelling "Allahu Akbar," or "God is Great." He cited revenge for NATO air attacks on his village as his motive.

She and Gannon were traveling in a convoy of election workers delivering ballots in the eastern city of Khost, under the protection of security forces.

Niedringhaus, who started her career at a local paper in her hometown, had been taking pictures in war zones such as Bosnia, the Middle East, Iraq and Afghanistan, since the 1990s. She won several awards, including the renowned US Pulitzer Prize for photographs taken as part of an AP team during the war in Iraq.

ng/msh (AP, dpa)