UNITED NATIONS (AFP) -- UN Secretary General Kofi Annan was "distressed and angered" by the killing in Afghanistan of a young Frenchwoman working for the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, UN spokesman Fred Eckhard said Sunday.

Bettina Goislard, 29, and her driver were attacked by a gunman on a motorcycle in the city of Ghazni 130 kilometers (80 miles) southwest of Kabul and she was killed at point-blank range. "He condemns this outrageous and contemptible act against unarmed UNHCR staff members who were assisting the people of Afghanistan," Eckhard said of Annan. "The United Nations remains determined in its support for the people of Afghanistan."

The spokesman noted that the attack came less than a week after the bombing in front of the United Nations offices in Kandahar, Afghanistan, and followed a series of other incidents directed against the agency.

"The secretary general believes this latest incident underscores the urgent need for the international community to provide stronger security in areas outside the capital, Kabul," Eckhard said. "He also calls on the government of Afghanistan and the international community to take the necessary measures to ensure the safety and security of United Nations and other agency staff who are engaged in providing assistance for the reconstruction of a peaceful Afghanistan."