Two arrested Taliban leaders identified

The two senior Taliban leaders reportedly handed over to the U.S. by the Northern Alliance have been identified as Mullah Mohammed Fazil and Mullah Noorullah Noori.

They are being held aboard the USS Peleliu, an American navy ship in the Arabian Sea. The U.S. defence officials had earlier said five prisoners, including the two Taliban leaders, had been shifted to the ship for interrogation.

The other three prisoners held aboard the ship were John Walker, the 20-year old American who fought alongside the Taliban and was captured following the massacre of prisoners of war in Qala-i-Jangi fort in Mazar-i-Sharif, a Saudi Arabian named Abdul Aziz who was running a humanitarian organisation and was accused of having terrorist links, and an Australian associated with the Taliban.

Mullah Fazil and Mullah Noori had surrendered to Uzbek warlord Abdul Rashid Dostum as part of a deal after handing over control of Kunduz in northern Afghanistan to him.

Mullah Fazil was commander of the Taliban troops that defended Mazar-i-Sharif against U.S. aerial strikes and Northern Alliance ground attacks for some weeks. He was subsequently forced to retreat to the Taliban stronghold of Kunduz.

Hailing from Kandahar, Mullah Fazil had earned rapid promotions and respect on account of his courage, leadership qualities and fighting skills. He had led Taliban troops to victory in several parts of the country and was often sent to command operations in difficult and hostile places.

Mullah Noori was not only governor of Balkh province but also head of the council of governors of all Taliban-held provinces in northern Afghanistan.

From his headquarters in Mazar-i-Sharif, he presided over a swathe of territory extending from Kunduz to Samangan and Jouzjan to Faryab. He is said to be an ethnic Uzbek.

Another famous Taliban military commander trapped in Kunduz was Mullah Dadullah. The one-legged commander refused to surrender to the Northern Alliance and reportedly made good his escape along with a band of followers. He was said to have reached Kandahar before Taliban surrendered control of the city to former Mujahideen commander Mullah Naqibullah.

The U.S.-based Human Rights Watch recently accused Mullah Fazil and Mullah Dadullah of war crimes and killing civilians and called for their trial.