WORLD> Middle East
Gunmen on motorbike shoot dead Afghan official
(Agencies)
Updated: 2008-12-01 14:30
KABUL, Afghanistan -- Gunmen on a motorbike killed a district chief in central Afghanistan on Monday, a provincial spokesman said.

Abdul Rahim Desewal was shot dead as he left his house in Ghazni city, capital of central Ghazni province, said Sayed Ismail Jahangir, spokesman for the provincial governor. Desewal's bodyguard was wounded in the attack.

The gunmen fled the scene after the shooting, Jahangir said.

Desewal was the chief of Andar district in Ghazni province, an area of intense militant activity.

It was not clear who was responsible, but Taliban militants regularly assassinate government officials in their attempt to weaken the grip of President Hamid Karzai's administration in the provinces.

Afghanistan has seen a spike in violence over the last two years. More than 5,800 people have died in insurgency-related violence this year, according to an Associated Press count based on figures from Afghan and Western officials.