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Article: The cleric's son, the lion and the drunken infidel; Attack on Afghanistan: Robert Fox profiles the key players leading the Northern Alliance forces.
- Article from:
- The Evening Standard (London, England)
- Article date:
- November 12, 2001
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2001 Solo Syndication Limited. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Byline: ROBERT FOX
Mohammed Fahim
THE KEY commander of the Northern Alliance forces now poised outside Kabul is Mohammed Fahim, 44, who took over from the charismatic Ahmad Shah Masood, murdered by two suicide bombers sent by Osama bin Laden on 9 September.
Fahim was Masood's chief of staff and took command of his forces when he went abroad on diplomatic missions. A native Tajik and the son of a Muslim cleric, Fahim studied Islamic law at Kabul university.
During the late Seventies he joined the anti-Communist resistance and linked up with Masood, becoming his military pupil. In the fight against Russian occupation he became the head ...