Anti-Taliban forces besiege Kunduz

BANGI (Afghanistan), NOV. 23. Anti-Taliban forces advanced on Kunduz on Friday and a spokesman for the Northern Alliance in Takhar province near Kunduz claimed that his forces had taken Aliabad, a town just east of Kunduz behind the Taliban front lines without a fight. The Taliban fighters there turned themselves in, he said.

A report from Dushanbe, capital of Tajikistan, said that 500 Taliban supporters have surrendered to the Northern Alliance forces in Kunduz. An Alliance official said the Taliban supporters began surrendering in small groups starting Thursday.

Forces loyal to the Alliance warlord, Gen. Rashid Dostum, advanced on Taliban positions from the west of Kunduz. Gen. Dostum said he was sending the fighters toward Kunduz only to prepare for the Taliban surrender.

Gen. Dostum, a key leader of Mazar-e-Sharif, said the surrender of Kunduz ``is settled.'' ``On Sunday, the Taliban should surrender to us and hand over the prisoners.''

According to Alliance commanders the surrender deal would give the Taliban fighters from Afghanistan free passage out of Kunduz, but imprison the foreigners. The foreigners would be placed in camps until the Alliance and the U.S.-led coalition can deal with them.

Many of the foreigners in Kunduz are believed to have ties with the Al-Qaeda.

Conflicting reports on Omar

A report from Chaman, Pakistan, says the embattled Taliban sent out conflicting signals today on the whereabouts of Mullah Mohammad Omar with one official saying he was in hiding and another quoted as saying the report was false.

Mullah Sayed Mohammad Haqqani, Taliban security official, said the Taliban leader had gone into hiding and appointed a deputy to run the affairs of the militia. But the AIP later quoted Mullah Omar's spokesman as saying the report was false.

- AP, AFP, Reuters

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