Members of the Taleban say they have captured and will execute supporters of Afghanistan's exiled former king, who reportedly entered the country secretly in an attempt to organize an anti-Taleban uprising.
The Pakistan-based Afghan Islamic Press (news agency) reports that sources within the Taleban say about 25 agents were arrested Thursday. The report says some of the captives may be executed today (Friday).
The Taleban's 25 captives are believed to be members of a group led by Hamid Karzai. a former mujahedeen commander who recently slipped into southern Afghanistan on a mission to stir up a rebellion against the Taleban.
Taleban forces are said to be searching for Mr. Karzai in the mountains of (Uruzgan province in) south-central Afghanistan.
The Afghan Islamic Press quotes Taleban members as saying they chased away four U-S helicopters that tried to rescue Mr. Karzai.
Another supporter of Afghanistan's former King Zahir Shah, former mujahedeen leader Abdul Haq, was executed last week after he secretly entered Afghanistan on a similar mission and was captured by the Taleban.