Taliban Assassinate Head of Afghan Government Media Department

    KABUL - The Taliban shot dead the head of the Afghan government's media information center Friday at a mosque in the capital, the ministry said, days after warning they would target senior administration officials in retaliation for increased air strikes.

"Unfortunately, the savage terrorists have committed a cowardly act once again and martyred a patriotic Afghan," interior ministry spokesman Mirwais Stanikzai said of the death of Dawa Khan Menapal. The Taliban claimed responsibility for the death, with spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid sending a message to media saying "he was killed in a special attack carried out by mujahideen". Fighting in Afghanistan's long-running conflict has intensified since May, when foreign forces began the final stage of a withdrawal due to be completed later this month.