HERAT, Afghanistan, Jan. 26 (Xinhua) -- Unidentified armed men shot dead a religious and Hajj official in Afghanistan's western province of Herat on Sunday, the provincial governor said.
The incident happened in Pashtun Zarghun district, where Mawlavi Abdul Rahim Ahmadi, chief of district's Hajj and Islamic Affairs branch, was shot dead on the spot when leaving for his office early Sunday morning, governor Abdul Qayum Rahimi told Xinhua.
No group has so far claimed responsibility for the murder, but Afghan officials blame Taliban militants for involvement in targeted attacks.
An investigation has been undertaken, Rahimi said.
At least five government officials, including a judge, have been gunned down by unknown armed men, most allegedly by the Taliban fighters, following a series of target attacks since early January.
The latest incident happened on Jan. 21, when a police officer and two assailants were killed following a gunfire exchange between police and the attackers in the country's southern Kandahar province.
