Armed insurgents entered the mosque and gunned down Mohammad Nahim Agha Mama as he prayed Tuesday morning. The Kandahar governor’s office condemned the killing as “an anti-Islamic and anti-human act” that desecrated a place of worship.

It said the Pashtun tribal leader and local council member of Dand district was well-known for encouraging peace and urging his followers not to join the Taleban.

Taleban insurgents have assassinated hundreds of Afghan government officials and supporters in recent years, seeking to sap public confidence in President Hamid Karzai’s administration.