The country's most celebrated warlord, Uzbek ABDUL RASHID DOSTUM has long been a strongman in the North. Though he still commands some 7,000 troops, lately his influence has been eroded by the rising power of Tajik USTAD ATTA MOHAMMED, whose force of 5,000 controls much of Mazar. Sporadic clashes between the rival factions have been temporarily defused.
Next: Kabul >>

Other Warlords:
 HERAT: Ismail Khan
 MAZAR-I-SHARIF: Abdul Rashid Dostum & Ustad Atta Mohammed
 KABUL: Hamid Karzai, Burhanuddin Rabbani & Gulbuddin Hekmatyar
 JALALABAD: Haji Abdul Qadir
 PAKTIKA: Pacha khan Zadran
 BAMIYAN: Karim Khalili
 KANDAHAR: Gul Agha Sherzai

 Back to the Main index


PHOTO BY EFREM LUKATSKY/AP & ROBERT NICKELSBERG FOR TIME
Get the Magazine - Try 4 Issues Risk-Free! | Click here to return to TIME.com