Ayub Gharwal, the deputy head of the provincial council of Afghanistan's eastern Paktia province, was assassinated in a shooting attack on Saturday, Mumtaz Karokhel, a member of the Paktia provincial council, said.

Gharwal was approached by unidentified gunmen on the morning of Saturday as he was walking from his office to the university in Gardez, the capital of Paktia, Karokhel said.

The man was injured and succumbed to his injuries before reaching the hospital.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack so far