Anti-Taliban Forces Make New Gains

KABUL, Saturday – Anti-Taliban forces fanning out from the key city of Mazar-i-Sharif made new gains in north-central Afghanistan on Saturday while stepping up pressure on the militia’s hold on Kabul, spokesmen said. But as opposition tanks and troop reinforcements massed north of the Afghan capital, the United States issued a blunt warning to the Northern Alliance to stay out of Kabul itself. The latest moves by the resistance forces came a day after they claimed their biggest victory of the five-week-old US-led offensive in Afghanistan by chasing the Taliban out of Mazar-i-Sharif without a fight. Opposition spokesmen said the alliance had taken control of three north-central provinces around Mazar-i-Sharif as well as an important river port just north of the city. “We are advancing and we are able to capture more areas,” Mohammad Ashraf Nadeem, a spokesman for Northern Alliance commander Atta Mohammad said. AFP Ends