Parliamentary elections in the Afghan province of Kandahar have been delayed by a week after the assassination of a powerful local police chief.
Gen Abdul Raziq was shot dead by a rogue bodyguard on Thursday, according to BBC.
The Taliban claimed the attack, which came after a high-level security meeting. US commander Gen Scott Miller narrowly escaped unhurt.
The local intelligence head was also killed and the governor was critically injured. Three Americans were hurt.
A spokesman for President Ashraf Ghani said that voting in the province would be delayed by a week in line with the wishes of the people.
Elections are due to be held across most of the rest of Afghanistan on Saturday. Security forces are already stretched, with more than 50,000 personnel being deployed for polling day.
The Taliban, who referred to Gen Raziq as a "brutal police chief", have urged voters to boycott the poll.
Correspondents say Gen Raziq was renowned as a powerful opponent of the Taliban in the south of Afghanistan - where the militant group is at its strongest.
His assassination is seen as a hugely significant victory for the Taliban and a major blow to the Afghan and US counter-insurgency campaign.
It is the first time since the 2001 US-led military intervention that the top commander of US/Nato forces has been involved in such an incident.