Taliban flee new US bomb raids

Taliban fighters are fleeing their last stronghold of Kandahar this morning, according to reports from refugees reaching the Pakistan border.

There are now at least three tribal armies loyal to local warlords converging on the city.

Followers of Taliban leader Mullah Omar have said he may abandon the city and take to the surrounding rocky mountains to mount a guerrilla campaign, looking for help from the remaining groups of al Qaeda fighters still in the area.

Mullah Omar, Osama bin Laden and his immediate lieutenant, the Egyptian cleric Sheikh al Zarawahi, are reported by Islamic media sources to have held a council of war in the Kandahar area on Tuesday to discuss a last desperate stand by their forces.

Fighting has been reported from inside the city throughout the morning - and American fighter bombers have mounted strikes on the outskirts. The former Mujahideen leader from the area, Hamid Karzia, has said that Kandahar "will be liberated soon".

Karzia returned to Kandahar a fortnight ago on a mission for the former King Zahai Khan. He was nearly captured by Mullah Omar's fighters, but made his escape under covering fire from American attack helicopters.