KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — Afghanistan is reeling after the Taliban assassinated two senior officials in Kandahar province, including its powerful police chief. The top U.S. commander who attended the high-level meeting where the attack happened was unharmed.

Thursday's meeting, on security plans for Afghanistan's parliamentary elections this weekend, had just concluded when an elite Afghan guard turned his gun on his colleagues.

The Kandahar police chief, Abdul Raziq, and the province's intelligence chief, Abdul Mohmin, were killed. Three Americans — a U.S. service member, a coalition contractor and an American civilian — were wounded.

A Taliban spokesman said the top U.S. commander in the country, Gen. Scott Miller, was the target.

The attack, more than 17 years after the Taliban were driven from power, underscores the harrowing insecurity in Afghanistan ahead of the elections.