Northern Alliance fighters waved their green-and-white flags and plastered pictures of slain military leader Ahmed Shah Massood on their trucks, as they shored up gains in the first significant advance by the opposition on the front north of Kabul. A senior opposition spokesman, said anti-Taliban forces pushed as far as Mir Bacha Kot, about 12 miles north of the capital, and were awaiting further orders. “We are at the gate of Kabul,’’ Khan declared in a satellite telephone conversation. Online adds: Afghan opposition forces early on Monday captured the western Afghan town of Herat, Iranian state radio said. “The Northern Alliance forces captured this city after killing and capturing a number of Taliban forces,” Radio Iran said, quoting its correspondent in the region.
Herat is a large town situated about 150 kilometres from the Iranian border. The radio said earlier that the troops were led by Ismail Khan, a Northern Alliance warlord and former governor of Herat.
PPI adds: Taliban officials have confirmed retreat of their troops from Samnagan Sarpul Saiful and Jauzjan and fall of several provinces. Taliban have been forced to retreat from different areas due to severe bombardment by the American aircraft on Taliban positions in several parts of Afghanistan. Taliban have confirmed fall of three more provinces after the fall of Mazar-e- Sharif to Alliance forces. However they rejected claims about the fall of Faryab province. Meanwhile Northern Alliance has claimed capturing capital of Badghis province. It has expressed the resolute that its forces would soon march on Heart. On the other hand the Taliban have claimed that they withdrew their troops from the three provinces under the war strategy. They have said that their troops are assembling again to retake areas.
Meanwhile the alliance forces also succeeded in controlling Sher Khan port. Prof Burhanuddin Rabbani’s Spokesman, Syed Ibrahim has claimed that the Northern Alliance has also taken control of Imam Sahib city close to Tajikistan border. A spokesman of General Rashid Dostum has claimed that the Alliance forces are now advancing toward the capital city of Baghlan province. The spokesman has said that alliance forces would soon enter in to an important city Pul-e-Khumri.
[url]http://www.paknews.com/top.php?id=1&date1=2001-11-13[/url]
Eric The(Now,OnToKandahar!)Hun[>]:)]