Taliban Lose Key Districts

KABUL, Tuesday - The opposition Northern Alliance said Tuesday it had dealt the biggest blow to the Taliban since US airstrikes started a month ago with the capture of three key districts in northern Afghanistan. The fall of Zari, Keshendeh and Aq-Kupruk districts, reported by commander Atta Mohammad’s force, took the opposition coalition a step closer to the key northern city of Mazar-i-Sharif. Atta’s spokesman, Mohammad Ashraf Nadeem, told AFP the three districts had fallen in heavy fighting in which 200 Taliban were killed and 300 had surrendered. The territory 70 kilometers (45 miles) south of Mazar-i-Sharif has swung backward and forwards between the two sides for several days, while US warplanes have carried out intense raids on Taliban lines. Nadeem said that among those captured was the Taliban’s northern commander Mullah Qair. “He was injured and we’re holding him prisoner. He’s one of Mullah Omar’s important commanders.” There were celebrations at the Northern Alliance headquarters, Nadeem said, but the alliance is well aware that each attack is often quickly followed by a counter-offensive. AFP Ends