KANDAHAR, AFGHANISTAN - Under the warm desert sun last weekend, Pir Syed Ahmad Gailani, a descendant of the prophet Mohammad's family, set off from Kandahar north to the desert town of Kalat, in the Taliban-dominated Zabul province, on a peace mission to disarm remaining hard-line Taliban commanders. He was trailed by a convoy of some 60 mujahideen; and armed with a 9mm Sigpro pistol given to him the night before by US Gen. Tommy Franks, who had touched down in Kandahar. As Mr. Gailani entered the gates of Kalat, the hillsides reverberated with rocket and Kalashnikov fire. A thick-set ...