Afghan opposition 'closes on key city'

Northern Alliance forces are poorly equipped

Afghanistan's opposition Northern Alliance forces say they are tightening their grip around the northern city of Mazar-e-Sharif, amid signs that co-ordination with US air strikes is being stepped up.

The Northern Alliance has taken more than 100 Taleban prisoners since Monday.

American planes are attacking exactly where we request, they don't hit anything else

General Dostum
Northern Alliance

US planes increased their attacks on Taleban front line positions on Tuesday.

But the Taleban have been putting up fierce resistance in some of the most intensive fighting of the war so far.

The BBC's David Loyn says that Mazar is proving to be an exception in a war with few pitched battles, where ground is often taken by negotiation.

Guidance

The Washington Post quoted opposition General Rashid Dostum as saying he was directing the US air strikes onto Taleban positions and that US help had allowed him to fend off a Taleban offensive.

General Dostum: reached agreement with rival commander

"American planes are attacking exactly where we request," he said. "They are precise; they don't hit anything else."

Pentagon officials would not confirm General Dostum's remarks.

General Dostum also said he had reached agreement with another opposition commander in the area, Mohammed Atta. He implied that previous disagreements prevented their combined forces from capturing the city last week.

Tough opponent

General Atta said his forces have been engaged in renewed heavy fighting against the Taleban since Monday.

He believes the defence of Mazar is being led by a key Taleban figure, Mullah Badullah, who led Afghans in the Chechen war and is a close friend of the Taleban leader, Mullah Omar.

The garrison in the city is strong, and some sources suggest there could be as many as 10,000 Taleban defenders including Arabs and other foreigners.

Opposition forces, however, are poorly equipped, relying mainly on supplies flown in by military helicopter.

Mazar was the scene of the one of the worst massacres by the Taleban four years ago.

The city is of crucial strategic importance because it is on the main road to the Uzbek border in the north, where American ground troops are based.

But correspondents say the US will need to do a great deal more to allow opposition forces to capture Mazar.