Afghan opposition forces are today set for a major attack on the strategic northern city of Mazar-i-Sharif in their first big push of the US-led war against the ruling Taliban.
Backed by US aircraft and mixing tanks with horseback warriors, the Northern Alliance claimed to be about eight kilometres from Mazar-i-Sharif after a series of victories on Tuesday and yesterday.
The Taliban disputes this claim.
With the Taliban well-entrenched in Mazar-i-Sharif for the past three years, a bloody battle looms for the provincial capital whose airport makes it an important staging and supply centre.
The Northern Alliance has called on the Taliban not to resist but say they will fight if necessary.
"Our troops are positioned eight kilometres from Mazar-i-Sharif airport to the southeast and 50 kilometres to the southwest, a spokesman for the opposition Northern Alliance said.
"We want to capture the city without fighting, but if the Taliban do not withdraw we will mount our attack at 4 p.m. (10.30 a.m. Irish time), he said.
The decision to launch a late-afternoon offensive followed a conference of ethnic Uzbek warlord General Abdul Rashid Dostum, mujahideen veteran Ustad Attah and other commanders last night.
"We will launch the two-pronged attack from the southeast and southwest", the spokesman said
Taliban officials acknowledge setbacks south of Mazar-i-Sharif but say the opposition claims of territorial movement are exaggerated.
Mr Qudratullah said opposition forces used tanks and rocket-propelled grenades in their drive toward Mazar-i-Sharif, capturing 250 Taliban fighters yesterday with another 500 surrendering.
US Marine Corps Gen Peter Pace, vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said the fighting around Mazar-i-Sharif remains fluid but that "we know the opposition has been making gain".
US aircraft today resumed their bombing of Taliban positions in northeastern Afghanistan close to the border with Tajikistan. But there was no sign of any movement on the ground by the Northern Alliance.
The attacks started at sunrise, about 6 am (1.30 a.m. Irish time), in the Kapisa region, about 50 kilometres northeast of the capital Kabul.
AFP