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Taliban opponent Karzai had to move secretly across this chessboard of feuding clans when he headed into southern Afghanistan, avoiding the Ghilzai villages. But Karzai and his men had to be rescued from a Taliban ambush by U.S. choppers early last week, according to the Pentagon. The U.S. hopes that Karzai will help persuade the Pashtun not to side with the Taliban against the Uzbeks, Tajiks and Hazaras. But for that to happen, Washington must rein in the worst excesses of their ethnic foes, once Northern Alliance fighters sweep into the Pashtun tribal lands.
--By Tim McGirk/Islamabad. With reporting by Ghulam Hasnain/Bajour