Afghan ex-minister says Taliban rule ended

The finance minister for Afghanistan's ousted Taliban said today the hardline militia's rule had ended and it would not oppose…

The finance minister for Afghanistan's ousted Taliban said today the hardline militia's rule had ended and it would not oppose a stable Islamic government, an Afghan news agency reported.

If a stable Islamic government is established in Afghanistan, then we don't intend to launch any action against it, Mullah Agha Jan Mutasim told the Afghan Islamic Press (AIP) from an unknown location inside Afghanistan.

He said the whereabouts of Taliban supreme leader Mullah Mohammad Omar were a secret and those of Osama bin Laden, Washington's prime suspect in the September 11th attacks on the United States, were unknown.

He said Taliban rule had ended and the people should not give any donations to anybody in the name of the Taliban.

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Afghan factions agreed in Bonn last week to set up a six-month interim government to replace the Taliban, routed by their local opponents backed by weeks of US air strikes.

PA