October 22, 2000

Opponents of Taliban languishing in Qandahar jail - says source
Zahedan, Sistan-Baluchestan prov., Oct 21, IRNA -- An informed Afghan source told IRNA here on Saturday that 2,400 opponents of the Taliban are held in jails in Qandahar.

Afghanistan's Taliban regime mulls ban on boxing
KABUL, Oct 22 (AFP) - New sports minister Mawlawi Qalamuddin of the Taliban regime in Afghanistan has said he was considering a ban on boxing, arguing it could cause mental and physical troubles for athletes later in life.

Taliban forces repulsed opposition attacks
ISLAMABAD (NNI): Taliban say their forces have foiled an attack of Ahmed Shah Masood forces on their positions in the outskirts of Khawajaghar district of Takhar province, Afghan official news agency Bakhtar has reported.

Taliban Dislodged from Farkhar Gorge Near Taloqan
WASHINGTON - AAR - 10/22/2000 - Following heavy overnight fighting Sunday, United Front forces under the command of Ahmad Shah Massoud dislodged Taliban forces from the strategic Farkhar Gorge leading to Taloqan,

U.N. official meets Taliban ahead of submitting report
ISLAMABAD, Oct. 22 (Kyodo) - Special U.N. envoy Francese Vendrell held talks Saturday with a team from Afghanistan's ruling Taliban in Kabul focusing on resumption of dialogue between the Taliban and Afghan opposition groups

Nine shells from Afghanistan hit Tajik territory
DUSHANBE, Oct 22 (Reuters) - Nine shells, fired in Afghanistan during weekend fighting, exploded on Tajik territory, a spokesman for Russian border guards based in the region said on Sunday.

Six former Soviet countries to form anti-Taliban force
BERLIN, Oct 21 (AFP) - Six former Soviet countries are to form a joint military force to counter the potential threat of an invasion by Taliban Islamists, Krygyz President Askar Akajew told the latest issue of Der Spiegel.

France opposes more curbs on Taliban
ISLAMABAD (NNI): France has told Afghanistan ruling Taliban that it strongly opposes imposition of more sanctions on the war-ravaged Afghanistan.

French envoy denies Taliban report on sanctions
ISLAMABAD, Oct 21 (AFP) - French Charge d'Affaires for Afghanistan Jean Yves Berthault on Saturday denied a report in the Taliban's weekly newspaper quoting him as opposing further aviation sanctions against the militia.

Mullahs poised to strike back if America targets bin Laden
By Julian West in Islamabad
Electronic Telegraph - 10/22/00
MUSLIM clerics are warning the West that reprisals will be taken against foreigners living in Pakistan if America mounts a widely-expected strike against Osama bin Laden's bases in Afghanistan.

Grenade Explodes at Pakistan Rally
KARACHI, Pakistan (AP) -- An explosion ripped through a rally of Islamic militants in southern Karachi on Sunday, killing three people and injuring 30, said police and hospital officials.

Mine-detecting dogs on trial in Afghanistan
ISLAMABAD: A United Nations study is to put mine-detecting dogs on trial in mine-infested Afghanistan, an advisor to the UN Coordinator for Afghanistan said in Islamabad on Friday.

Afghan FM arrives in Islamabad on 25 Oct
ISLAMABAD (NNI): Afghan Foreign minister Maulvi Abdul Wakil Ahmed Mutawakil arrives in Islamabad on October 25 (Wednesday) to attend an international conference on Palestine, organizers of the moot said Saturday.