US warplanes
Troops loyal to Ismail Khan have been battling the forces of Pashtun commander Aman Allah Khan for the past four days.
On Tuesday evening, US warplanes bombed positions held by Aman Allah's forces.
Ismail Khan has ruled Herat city with an iron fist but is accused of cracking down hard on his opponents.
He has also been at loggerheads with Kabul over his reluctance to remit taxes on an estimated monthly income of seven to nine million dollars to the cash-strapped central government.
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As the Afghanis prepare for presidential elections in October, analysts say Afghanistan is not ready, but is being used for political point-scoring by the Bush administration, in the wake of what the US is facing in Iraq.
alJazeera 18.Aug.04
