Northern Alliance And Taliban Said To Intensify Combat Activities

Russian borderguards report intensified combat activities between the Northern Alliance forces and the Taliban in the immediate proximity to the Tajik-Afghan border. The press service of the Russian Frontier Service group in Tajikistan reported on Tuesday that both sides used artillery and guns. Observing the combat activities which were staged 10-15 kilometres away from the border, Russian borderguards at the Novoovrazhnaya border outpost registered a few powerful explosions on Afghan territory. In the small hours on Tuesday, a column of 29 cars was reportedly moving from the kishlak Minchukor /in the Taliban-controlled zone/ to the town of Imamsakhim. The press service assumed these might be refugees on their way to the zones controlled by the Northern Alliance.