The campaign to capture Mazar-i-Sharif began on October 17, 2001, when the CIA's eight-member Team Alpha landed in the Dari-a-Suf Valley, about 80 miles south of the city, to link up with General Abdul Rashid Dostum.
The military operation to capture Mazar-i-Sharif started on October 17, 2001, when a CIA special forces team consisting of eight members landed in the Dari-a-Suf Valley, about 80 miles south of the city, with the objective of meeting with General Abdul Rashid Dostum.