Official: Taliban abduct candidate in northern province

An Afghan official says Taliban gunmen have abducted a candidate running for a seat in the provincial council and seven members of his entourage.

Governor Abdul Jabar Haqbeen said on Monday that candidate Hussain Nazari and seven others were taken overnight in the northern Sar-i-Pul province.

They were travelling in a taxi to the provincial capital and had no security escort with them. The governor says elders in the area are trying to negotiate with the Taliban to get Nazari and the others released.

Afghanistan is holding elections on Saturday for a new president to replace Hamid Karzai as well as for provincial council members.

The Taliban have vowed to use force to disrupt the April 5 vote and have stepped up attacks in the lead-up to the polling.

Suicide bombers targeted buildings near the Independent Election Commission headquarters in Kabul. The Taliban claimed responsibility for that attack.

Taliban have fighters also attacked a Kabul guesthouse used by Roots of Peace, a U.S. anti-landmine charity and a hotel frequented by foreigners that was considered one of the safest places in Kabul.

Al Jazeera and wire services