New Delhi, Feb 13: Gearing up for the "final" battle against US-led forces in Afghanistan, Taliban is regrouping in the Khyber Agency region of Pakistan for the crucial offensive to be mounted in spring under a new commander to recapture major cities, media reports said. "The resistance under a new commander is regrouping in the remote Khyber Agency region of Pakistan, using the infrastructure of people and fortifications laid by Osama bin Laden's al-Qaeda several years ago," said the report.
Quoting Taliban sources, it said the new commander for the proposed "spring offensive" would be Mullah Sabir Momin of Orugzan province.
Uptil now, Pakistan has aided some commanders in Afghanistan belonging to the Hizb-i-Islami Afghanistan (HIA) of Gulbuddin Hekmatyar.
"Pakistan's purpose was not so much to damage the US interests, but to establish a counter-force to the growing pro-India presence along the Afghani border areas with Pakistan", though it worked against the US interests also, the report said.
American intelligence agencies "tracked HIA recruiting offices in Pakistani cities such as Karachi and Peshawar and pointed to the various locations in Pakistan where HIA volunteers were being given training, money and arms". Bureau Report