WORLD BRIEFING / AFGHANISTAN

The government said it had reached a cease-fire with the Taliban in a remote province but that it lasted only a few hours before clashes broke out again.

The deal in northwestern Badghis province near the border with Turkmenistan came amid an escalation of violence as the Aug. 20 presidential election nears.

A spokesman for President Hamid Karzai said the agreement was reached Saturday. He said the government wanted to make similar deals in other parts of the country in a bid to improve security for the election.

However, the Interior Ministry said that several hours later, “enemies of peace and stability,” a term often used to describe Taliban insurgents, had ambushed police in Badghis. Two insurgents were killed and two police wounded, it said.

Taliban spokesman Qari Mohammed Yusuf said there had been no cease-fire.