Afghan: 2 Taliban shadow governors arrested

[maddezmom]

Source: AP

KABUL — Two Taliban shadow governors from northern Afghanistan have been arrested by Pakistani authorities, an Afghan official told The Associated Press on Thursday.

The reported arrests occurred about the same time as the capture of the Afghan Taliban's No. 2 figure, who was apprehended in the Pakistani city of Karachi. The loss of several key figures from the militant leadership is likely to be a severe setback to the Taliban — at least in the short term — as they come under military pressure from U.S.-led forces in the south.

Mohammmad Omar, the official governor of Kunduz province, said Mullah Abdul Salam, the Taliban governor of Kunduz and Mullah Mohammad, his counterpart in Baghlan, were arrested about 10 to 12 days ago in Pakistan.

Both were key figures in the Taliban's expansion to northern Afghanistan, where their forces threatened NATO supply lines coming south from Central Asia and raised alarm that the militants were extending their influence nationwide.



Read more: http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jnJdANp2VrvhE9ejRzLsv6PNIpXwD9DUGGF82

[Joanne98]

1. In Blow to Taliban, 2 More Senior Leaders Are Arrested

Source: NYT

KABUL, Afghanistan — Two senior Taliban leaders have been arrested in recent days inside Pakistan, officials said Thursday, as American and Pakistani intelligence agents continued to press their offensive against the group’s leadership after the capture of the insurgency’s military commander last month.

Afghan officials said the Taliban’s “shadow governors” for two provinces in northern Afghanistan had been detained in Pakistan by officials there. Mullah Abdul Salam, the Taliban’s leader in Kunduz, was detained in the Pakistani city of Faisalabad, and Mullah Mir Mohammed of Baghlan Province was also captured in an undisclosed Pakistani city, they said.

The arrests come on the heels of the capture of Abdul Ghani Baradar, the Taliban’s military commander and the deputy to Mullah Muhammad Omar, the movement’s founder. Mr. Baradar was arrested in a joint operation by the C.I.A. and the ISI, Pakistan’s military intelligence agency.

The arrests were made by Pakistani officials, the Afghans said, but it seemed probable that C.I.A. officers accompanied them, as they did in the arrest of Mr. Baradar. Pakistani officials declined to comment.


Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/19/world/asia/19taliban.html

[NJmaverick]

2. Sounds like someone is talking

[Robb]

5. Indeed. nt

[DCBob]

8. If Baradar is giving up actionable intel that is a huge development..

The end could be near for the Talibangers.

[tanyev]

3. In Blow to GOP Talking Points, .....

[unblock]

7. thank god that cheney's staybehinds are hard at work protecting america!

we'd have terrists roaming the streets of peoria if they left barack hussein obama to handle it himself!




see, republican talking points are EASY!

[Don Caballero]

4. This is awesome!!!!

We should thank our President for focusing on Af/Pak instead of Shrub's war of aggression in Iraq. This is how things are done when the adults take over.

[bamacrat]

6. Man is Obama weak on terrorism. n/t

[thereismore]

9. Baradar is talking. Did Pox news even mention the capture of Taliban's #2? nt

[panzerfaust]

10. Taliban? But the Taliban has not been in existence since 2004

"And as a result of the United States military, Taliban no longer is in existence."
* speech in Springfield, Ohio, September 27, 2004

As widely quoted ... though not much by Faux Newts anymore.

(google it)