Taliban leader's brother-in-law captured
Afghan security forces captured a brother-in-law of Mullah Omar on today as he drove near the fugitive Taliban leader’s home town.
Mullah Amanullah was arrested near Deh Rawood, a town in Uruzgan province 250 miles south-west of the capital, Kabul, said provincial police chief Rozi Khan.
He said Amanullah opened fire on Afghan forces who had flooded the area after a tip off and stopped his car. A police commander was killed.
“After that the other police were able to arrest him,” Khan said. Three remote-controlled bombs and a satellite telephone as well as an AK-47 assault rifle were found in the vehicle, he said.
It was not immediately clear what role Amanullah, who like many Afghans goes by one name, held in the Taliban movement or if he had any contact with Omar.
The one-eyed Taliban leader had four wives, each of which could have many brothers if they belong to typically large Afghan families.
Khan said Afghan authorities might hand Amanullah over to American forces, who have a base near Deh Rawood.
Deh Rawood has been a focus of the stubborn insurgency maintained by Omar’s followers since US forces and Afghan allies pushed them from power in late 2001.
The US military is currently pulling out a 2,000-strong Marine force who have killed scores of militants in Uruzgan and neighbouring provinces since May.
They are to be replaced by a regular infantry battalion.
