Battles of Mazar - i - Sharif ( 1997 – 98 ) The Battles of Mazar - e Sharif were a part of the Afghan Civil War and took place in 1997 and 1998 between the forces of Abdul Malik Pahlawan and his Hazara allies , Junbish - e Milli - yi Islami - yi Afghanistan and the Taliban Background . On 25 June 1996 , the brother of Abdul Malik Pahlawan , Rasul , was gunned down along with 15 of his bodyguards . In May 1997 , angry at Dostum ' s alleged involvement in this , Malik and other commanders such as Qari Alam Rosekh , General Abdul Majid Rouzi and Ghafar Pahlawan met with Taliban commanders Mullah Abdul Razzaq and Mullah Ghaus in Baghdis . There they agreed that Malik would betray Dostum , capture Ismail Khan and take control of the city of Mazar - e Sharif . According to some sources the deal was a three point proposal in which it was agreed that the Taliban would not disarm northern troops , Northern Parties would have complete control over Northern Afghanistan and Malik would co - ordinate with the Taliban to bring about an Islamic dispensation . Prelude . Fighting breaks out and Taliban take control . On 22 May 1997 fighting broke out between Dostum ' s forces and the Taliban in Andkhoy and Khwaja Dokoh . Massoud sent reinforcements but the Northern Alliance faced heavy losses . Dostum retreated to Mazar - i Sharif and fled to Turkey from Uzbekistan on 24 May , with his family going one day before . On 25 May , Abdul Majid Rouzi arrested Ismail Khan in Baghdis and handed him over to Abdul Razzaq , the governor of Herat where he was sent to Kandahar prison . Battle . Taliban ousted . Although the exact details of the agreement were not clear , it appears as if the Taliban had failed to take their part . Abdul Razzak was appointed as the head of the Military in the north , rather than Malik , and Malik in compensation was given the insulting position of Deputy Foreign Minister . On 25 May , the Taliban entered Mazar - e Sharif and began to close schools , offices and to impose Sharia law . In the Hazara sections of the city , particularly in the north - east and east areas around Syedabad , local Wahdat commanders and armed " civilians " began to enlist themselves in resistance . On 30 May , heavy fighting broke out around Syedabad . Taliban fighters were ambushed . At this point , Malik allied his forces with Wahdat , taking thousands of Taliban soldiers prisoner in Maimana , Shiberghan and Mazar - e Sharif . Those taken prisoner in Mazar were summarily executed , reportedly under the supervision of Malik ' s brother General Gul Mohammad Pahlawan . Estimates of the total number killed were about 3 , 000 . Commanders such as Mullah Abdul Razzaq , Mullah Mohammad Ghaus who was the acting Taliban Foreign Minister and State Bank Governor , and Maulvi Ehsanullah were taken prisoner . Furthermore Junbish commanders such as Ghulam Haidar Jawzjani were also captured and killed , along with Salam Pahlawan and Rais Omar Bey . Taliban counter - attack . Malik then proceeded to reincorporate Jamiat - e Islam into the city ' s administration . However after 4 months , in September 1997 , the Taliban bombarded the city , laying siege to it for 23 days . Looting , killings by all sides was reported . The Taliban were eventually defeated , but killed 70 Hazara civilians in Qizilabad and around 50 Junbushi prisoners in Qalai - i Kul Muhammad . Recapture of Mazar - e Sharif . By July 1998 the Taliban had taken control of much of the area north of Herat , including the road linked to Maimana , where Dostum had returned and ousted Malik ' s forces ( and also many Pashtoon civilians living in Faryab ) . This cut off one of the main supply lines , and on 8 August 1998 the Taliban entered Mazar - e Sharif . Hezb - e Islam reportedly switched sides and joined the Taliban , having encircled the front lines of Hezbe Wahdat at Qalai - Zaini - Takhta Pul . Here about 1 , 500 – 3 , 000 Wahdat fighters were trapped . Many were executed on the spot , while approximately 700 attempted to flee in pick up trucks , many being killed on the way . Commanders of Wahdat such as Muhammad Muhaqiq evacuated by helicopter . The Taliban then proceeded to enter the city where they took their revenge , executing approximately 2 , 000 Hazara civilians . One group , Sipah - i Sahaba , associated with Pakistan and the Taliban , capture the Iranian consulate and shot dead one journalist and eight intelligence and diplomatic officers . The Taliban , for the next six days were reported to have gone door to door looking for male Hazara Shias and then subsequently executing them . Thousands of prisoners were transported by both sides in metal transport truck containers where many suffocated or died of heat stroke .