Mohammad Dawood Muzammil, the Taliban's governor of the Balkh province in northern Afghanistan, was murdered in an explosion in his workplace.
According to AFP on Thursday, Muzammil was the highest-ranking official to be assassinated since the Taliban retook control in 2021.
Since then, there has been a marked decrease in violence, but notable pro-Taliban figures and others have been slain in a number of attacks, several of which were claimed by Islamic State.
There has been no immediate claim of responsibility, according to the local police, and the reason of the most recent explosion is unknown.
Instead, the governor was "martyred in an explosion by the enemies of Islam," according to a tweet from Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid.
He also said that an investigation would be launched to determine who was responsible for the attack and why.
According to reports, Muzammil oversaw the conflict with Islamic State jihadists while serving as governor of the eastern province of Nangarhar. Last October, he was relocated to Balkh.
The explosion happened "about 9am... within the second level of the governor's office," according to Mohammed Asif Waziri, the spokesman for the Balkh police.
According to police, at least one more individual died in the assault. There are reports of numerous other people suffering injuries.
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A bang was heard. I dropped to the ground," Khairuddin, a victim of the explosion, told AFP. He claimed that while seeing the explosion, a friend lost a hand.
He claimed that the explosion happened right when the governor entered his office.