Gunmen abducted a US female aid worker today in Afghanistan's southern province of Kandahar, the provincial governor said.
The 49-year-old woman, who was not identified, was seized from her car while on the way to her office, Assadullah Khalid told reporters.
"This happened this morning when she was being driven to her office. Her driver is kidnapped too," Khalid said.
The woman has lived for years in Kandahar, part of the main bastion of Taliban insurgents, and was working in an aid group linked to the agricultural sector, he said.
When asked who the abductors could be, Khalid said only "gunmen". He said a search for her was under way.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility, but in the past criminal gangs and Taliban have kidnapped a number of foreigners and Afghans.