Mullah Omar reportedly holing up in northern Afghan town Kunduz

Kyodo News and IRNA ^ | November 15, 2001

[HAL9000]

TEHRAN, Nov. 15 Kyodo - Supreme Taliban leader Mohammed Omar has holed up in Kunduz, the only major city held by the Taliban in northern Afghanistan, and has been using local residents as human shield against rebel attacks, Iran's news agency IRNA said Thursday, quoting a senior Iranian diplomat in Tajikistan.

IRNA said the Iranian diplomat, the minister at the Iranian Embassy in Tajikistan, gave no details about Omar's whereabouts but assured that the information came from a reliable source. Tajikistan borders Afghanistan to the south.

IRNA said 30,000 Taliban fighters are defending Kunduz and have barred local citizens from leaving the city, using them as ''human shield'' against attacks by the Northern Alliance.

---

FROM IRNA

Mulla Omar is in Kunduz, reliable informed sources

Dushanbe, Nov 15, IRNA -- Taliban leader Mulla Mohammad Omar is in the northern Kunduz province, the deputy ambassador of the Afghanistan Islamic government to Tajikistan Mohyuddin Mahdi told IRNA here Thursday citing reliable informed sources.

He said he was unaware of further details, but reiterated the authenticity of the news could be vouchsafed.

Taliban's fierce resistance in the province in the face of the United Islamic Front's besiege of the region has further given rise to speculations that Omar could be in Kunduz, Mahdi said.

According to reports, Taliban have gathered 30,000 of their fighters in Kunduz and are preventing residents from leaving the province, using them as human shields against probable attacks of by the alliance or the US.

They have so far shrugged off calls to to turn themselves to the alliance forces.

Taliban fighters are making a last stand in the besieged city, where thousands of the United Front soldiers are reported preparing for an assault.

BH/AR
End
::irna 17:33

[xm177e2]

I don't think the Taliban could outlast the loss of its leaders.

[samtheman]

What's the reward being offered for this scumbag? Maybe it should be increased a bit, and those human shields might be tempted to make a bit'o'change on the deal.

[Hillary 666]

Time to take out the trash.

[AmericanInTokyo]

Omar goodness! Thanks for the post!

[Economist_MA]

And given that other reports say that Kunduz is completely surrounded by the NA, this should get ugly.

[Dog Gone]

This is the same news agency that said we had captured the Bagram AFB and were landing planes there about three days before it actually happened.

Still, that's a better source than DEBKA, who assured us that there were 15,000 Chinese fighting alongside the Taliban forces.

[blam]

This is the area that was reported to have been 'heavily' bombed by our planes today. (six planes, heavily?)

[denydenydeny]

Then his days are numbered in the low single digits.

[donozark]

30K Taliban in Kunduz alone? Haven't read so large a figure prior to this. looks like they are employing the same tactic the "skinnies" in Somalia used.

[DallasMike]

To paraphrase what someone posted the other night: When Mullah Omar was told the Americans were coming, he said that he would keep an eye out for them.

[lexington minuteman 1775]

Well looks like Kunduz may be apocalypse now for the Taliban big poohbah's. This is good strategy becuase getting them in any kind of conventional battle before they hole up in those caves means there will be fewer cave dwellers if you get my drift.

[Grampa Dave]

Exactly! Set it at $25 million for his head, $5 million for each leg and arm, and $10 million for his torso. Then after identification they can replace the headless goat with Omar's torso and play that great game they play with their horses and the expired goat er Omar! Or they can drag it back to Kabul behind a herd of pigs!

[Cultural Jihad]

When Mullah Omar was told the Americans were coming, he said that he would keep an eye out for them.

Ouch! :D

[Sabertooth]

growl!

[Diogenesis]

[Clean_Sweep]

six planes, heavily

I don't know where you get the number of planes, however 6 B52s filled with cluster bombs would tend to ruin the day for anyone.

[Aggie Mama]

He looks like that tall skinny magician -- with a beard.....what's his name? David Copperfield?

[The Real Deal]

(six planes, heavily?)

That could be very heavy, if they are all dropping Daisy Cutters!

[MistyCA]

You know, I am so proud of our military and our President! I had as much fear as everyone else in the beginning of this endeavor, hearing that the taliban were so much more acclimated to the environment then we were, and how they could hold-up in their caves for up to 4 yrs without the need to resupply. I had visions of our men being dragged into a ground war and the taliban setting them up in ambushes, etc.

I am sure everyone else feels as happy as I do to see the defeat of the taliban. They were so smug in their proclamations! They were so smug in their belief that the Americans were weak. Of course I never believed that, but I had this fear that we would be in this war for a very long time, hunting them out and losing our men in the process. All I can say is "Up yours bin Laden!" I am so thrilled that this has been accomplished so quickly and I wish I could see the terror in their faces that I know has to be there. The Russians spent how many years trying to fight these people? Just goes to show, when the big boys are playing you don't have a chance. Our big boys (Bush's entire team) are fantastic! And just goes to show that Clinton really was a wimp. He had all that potential power behind him and he only used it to better himself. I hope the whole world understands that now.