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 campaign to secure Mazar-i-Sharif began on October 17, 2001, when CIA operatives from Team Alpha entered the Dari-a-Suf Valley, approximately 80 miles south of the city, with the aim of linking up with General Abdul Rashid Dostum.