New Taliban commander vows to free Afghanistan

A man described as the Taliban's new top field commander has vowed to liberate Afghanistan from "American slavery," a pro-Taliban cleric said Saturday. Dadullah Mansoor made the remarks in an audiotape played Friday at a rally at Killi Nalai, a village about 75 kilometers (45 miles) west of Quetta near the Afghan border, said Abdul Sattar Chishti, the cleric who organized the event. He said Mansoor vowed to avenge his brother's death and those of others killed while fighting US, NATO and Afghan forces. "The blood of my brother will never go waste. We will never forget his sacrifices, and the role of other martyrs. We will complete Dadullah's mission by expelling Americans and liberating Afghanistan," Chishti quoted Mansoor as saying.