KANDAHAR, Afghanistan (Reuters) – Unidentified gunmen shot dead the most senior woman police officer in southern Afghanistan on Sunday, an official said.

KABUL (Reuters) – Afghanistan’s foreign minister on Sunday declined to confirm a report that said the government was in contact with Taliban insurgents to negotiate an end to the conflict.

Hopes of a Mid-East peace deal before the end of the Bush administration appear to have been quietly put aside by certain parties involved in the process.