Northern Alliance Forces Take 180 Taliban Fighters Captive

A source in the Afghan embassy in Dushanbe has told RIA Novosti that Northern Alliance forces have taken 180 Taliban fighters captive in the settlement of Shurch, 15 kilometres from a northern regional centre in the province of Balkh-Mazari-Sahrif. According to the source's information, the city itself is surrounded by Northern Alliance troops. Advanced units are only several kilometres away from the Mazari-Sharif aerodrome.