The Taliban may have 500 tanks in Kandahar and would defend the ancient southern Afghan city to their last breath, said a former commander who recently escaped the city.
Mr Mullah Bismillah, in charge until two weeks ago of a Taliban ammunition depot in Kandahar, said Taliban supreme leader Mullah Mohammad Omar and his hardcore fighters were waiting for the start of the ground war.
"They have all kinds of weapons and ammunition to defend themselves. If there is a ground attack by America, they will fight," Mr Bismillah said last night.
He fled Kandahar for the southwestern Pakistani city of Quetta in early November because of heavy US bombing and because he said he did not believe in sacrificing his life for Saudi-born Islamic radical Osama bin Laden.
"As far as tanks and ammunition are concerned, I myself saw 500-600 tanks in Kandahar city," he said.
He said some tanks positioned in the mountains around Kandahar had been destroyed by US air strikes.