71.   Abdullah said the northern alliance knew exactly where Osama bin Laden was hiding but that he would not provide this information to reporters.

72.   Abdullah, the foreign minister of the Rabbani government, has emerged as a key spokesman for the northern alliance.

73.   A victory by the opposition northern alliance in those two provinces would ensure its dominance in northern Afghanistan even if pockets of Taliban fighters remain.

74.   A spokesman for northern alliance delegate Mohammad Hussin Natiqi said leaders in Kabul had failed to grasp the international focus on the talks in Germany.

75.   Abdullah, foreign minister for the anti-Taliban northern alliance, said negotiations for a peaceful takeover of Kandahar had failed.

76.   A U.S. official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said there were credible reports that Ahmadulla had defected to northern alliance rebels.

77.   Addressing Pakistani concerns about the anti-Taliban northern alliance rebels, Rice said the administration wanted to make sure that all interests are represented in postwar Afghanistan.

78.   Abbas is an ethnic Tajik like the titular head of the northern alliance Burhanuddin Rabbani and many of the fighters who make up the anti-Taliban opposition.

79.   Abbas is an ethnic Tajik like the titular head of the northern alliance Burhaunddin Rabbani and many of the fighters who make up the anti-Taliban opposition.

80.   Abdullah said recent battlefield successes for his northern alliance has left the Taliban severely weakened.