Afghan Deputy Governor, 5 Others Killed in Mosque Attack

A suicide bomber in Afghanistan killed six people, including the deputy governor of the dangerous Helmand province, in an attack inside a mosque today. At least 11 others were injured in the explosion in the provincial capital of Lashkar Gah, a focus of reconstruction programs led by the British army, reports the Times of London.

The attack came as a Washington think tank warned that the country was in danger of becoming "a failing or failed state." Pir Mohammad, who was praying when the bomb exploded, appeared to be the target of the attack. Helmand is the center of poppy production in Afghanistan, and Mohammad became deputy governor despite his reputed links to the drug trade. (More Afghanistan stories.)