The assailants struck around 11:30 a.m. just as a memorial service for those killed in the Panjwai district of Kandahar Province was coming to an end, said Adubl Rahim Ayobi, a member of Parliament from the province. The death of the Afghan soldier was confirmed by Gen. Abdul Raziq, the Kandahar provincial police chief, who added that two other people were wounded, including an Afghan military prosecutor.

The notables attending the ceremony, including two of President Karzai’s brothers, appeared to escape unharmed. “A few bullets landed in the vicinity of the area where the delegation was sitting,” Mr. Ayobi said in a telephone interview as he made his way back to Kandahar City, the provincial capital. “The security forces repelled the attack and are chasing the insurgents.”…

A New York Times reporter was at the mosque where a memorial service was taking place during the insurgents’ attack and described heavy firing for a period of 20 minutes, while the Afghan Army’s chief of staff and other officials were pinned down inside. The militants, who were armed with machine guns and assault rifles, appeared to have suffered some casualties, and left behind at least one of the motorcycles they were riding.