Siege of Kunduz looks set to end
Saturday, 24 November 2001 20:49
There are indications that the siege of Kunduz, the last remaining Taliban stronghold in northern Afghanistan, is coming to a finish.
Hundreds of Taliban fighters left the city and gave themselves up to the Northern Alliance. Twenty vehicles carrying armed Taliban fighters came out of the city this morning and surrendered.
Alliance commanders said that they expect a general surrender of all Taliban forces in the city shortly. However, there are fears for the safety of foreign fighters understood to be still in the city. It appears the convoy did not include any foreign soldiers.
Meanwhile, fighting between Northern Alliance and Taliban troops west of Kabul has ended peacefully. The fighting had been taking place around Maidan Shahr, which is nine miles from the Afghan capital.
General Rashid Dostum, one of the main Alliance commanders in northern Afghanistan, says that the surrender of Taliban forces inside the city of Kunduz has been arranged for tomorrow.
He said that the deal would allow Afghan Taliban soldiers to surrender their weapons and return to their home provinces in the South. He said that there would be no safe passage for foreign Taliban fighters, who would be held in detention camps while they were investigated for links with Osama Bin Laden's Al-Qaeda network.
Earlier, the Northern Alliance said that it had made more gains around the city of Kunduz, taking the small town of Aliabad without a fight.
- 9.00 News: John O'Driscoll reports on the concerns being expressed over the welfare of foreign fighters in Afghanistan
- 9.00 News: Walt Kilroy reports from northern Afghanistan on the latest developments in the war there
- 6.01 News: John O'Driscoll has the details on the siege of Kunduz
- 6.01 News: Walt Kilroy reports from northern Afghanistan on the latest developments in the war there
- 1.00 News: John O'Driscoll reports on the latest developments
