A suicide attacker in eastern Afghanistan has blown himself up at the funeral of a slain provincial governor, killing at least five policemen and wounding 30 other people.
Several Cabinet minister and members of Afghanistan's parliament were among hundreds of people who gathered for the funeral in Khost province for Abdul Hakim Taniwal, the governor of neighboring Paktia province. Taniwal was one of three people killed by another suicide attacker on Sunday.
In Kandahar province, meanwhile, military spokesmen say NATO and Afghan troops killed close to 100 Taleban fighters since Sunday, raising the enemy's casualty toll to more than 500 during a NATO-led offensive.
The offensive, dubbed Operation Medusa, began on September 2 to wipe out Taleban strongholds in the province.
On Sunday, Canada called on NATO's member nations to make a bigger contribution to the effort to suppress Taleban insurgents.
Afghanistan's ambassador to the United States, Said Jawad, has said many Taleban fighters who were driven out of the country by U.S.-led forces in 2001 and 2002 have now returned. However, he adds that Afghanistan's recovery from years of authoritarian rule by the Taleban is too far advanced to be derailed.
Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters.
