* Dawa Khan Menapal, head of Afghan media centre, shot dead in Kabul on Friday
* He was sitting in his car outside a mosque for Friday prayers when he was killed
* Taliban fighters also captured first regional capital - Zaranj, in Nimroz province
* American forces are now sending bombers and drones from Qatar to help defend other regional capitals of Lashkar Gah, Herat and Kandahar
The Taliban has assassinated a senior Afghan government official inside his car in the capital Kabul as it steps up its bloody drive to recapture the country.
Dawa Khan Menapal, head of the government's media information centre, was shot dead near a mosque in the city on Friday, just a day after defence minister Bismillah Mohammadi escaped a bomb and gun attack.
Meanwhile, the group's Islamist fighters captured their first regional capital - Zaranj, in Nimroz province near Iran - marking their most-significant battlefield victory against government forces to date.
Read more ....
More News On The Taliban Seizing The Afghan Provincial Capital Of Zaranj
Afghanistan war: Taliban capture regional capital Zaranj, officials say -- BBC
Taliban overrun first Afghan provincial capital since U.S. began withdrawal -- NBC News
Provincial capital in Afghanistan falls to the Taliban -- The Hill
Taliban Capture Zaranj, an Afghanistan Provincial Capital, in a Symbolic Victory -- NYT
Taliban takes first provincial capital in Afghanistan as city of Zaranj falls into group's hands -- RT
Taliban captures Afghan provincial capital Zaranj -- Al Jazeera
Taliban kill top Afghan govt media official, seize provincial capital of Zaranj -- France 24
Resurgent Taliban takes provincial capital, kills Afghan government spokesman -- CNN
Afghanistan: Gunmen kill government's top media officer -- DW
Taliban assassinates Afghan government's top media officer in Kabul -- ABC News Australia
