Sources in Washington and Moscow said yesterday that the Afghan opposition leader, Mr Ahmad Shah Masood, was killed in a suicide bombing in northern Afghanistan, while his followers insisted that he was alive.
A US official in Washington, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Mr Masood had been killed by "individuals who portrayed themselves to be members of the media". Russia's ITAR-TASS news agency continued to report late yesterday that Mr Masood had died.
"Critically wounded, Masood died while being transferred to a hospital at Dushanbe," the Tajik capital, the agency said, without revealing its sources.
But the Afghan opposition vehemently denied reports that Mr Masood had died of wounds sustained in the bombing in northern Afghanistan the day before.
"Masood is in a hospital but his condition is out of danger," opposition spokesman Jamshed said.
"We can assure you that he is OK and the doctors have advised him not to attend any phone calls," Jamshed said.
Mr Masood's condition was impossible to verify independently.
The opposition earlier said Mr Masood was recovering in hospital after the assassination attempt by Arab suicide bombers posing as journalists who were allegedly linked to Saudi extremist, Mr Osama bin Laden.
"Thank God he is in good health. I talked to him through a wireless this morning and he was okay," said Mr Waisuddin Salik, a spokesman for the loose opposition alliance fighting Afghanistan's ruling Taliban militia.
"He has sustained minor injuries all over his body but the wounds in his foot are serious," the spokesman said.
A press statement from Mr Masood's Northern Alliance said that the opposition leader had suffered "light wounds" to his leg and arms. It said Mr Masood had temporarily handed over military command to a deputy, identified as Gen Fakhim. ITAR-TASS, citing informed Afghan sources, reported that control of the movement had been given to Gen Fakhim.
A foreign ministry spokesman in France said Paris was trying to obtain information about Mr Masood's condition, while an official at the Afghan embassy in London said his condition was "improving minute-by-minute" and was "much better than yesterday".
The official, who said he was a press officer, cited as his source an "assistant, a close aide" to Mr Masood.
Mr Masood's relatives said his condition was not life-threatening.
"Masood's health is fine. He is injured but his life is not in danger," said Mr Mohammad Saleh Reghistani, a relative who serves as a diplomat for the government-in-exile in Moscow.
Mr Reghistani said the two Arabs were killed when they exploded a bomb during a meeting on Sunday at Mr Masood's base in northeastern Takhar province, along with his interpreter and personal assistant, Mr Assem Suhail, who sometimes acted as his spokesman.
The Afghan ambassador to India, Mr Masood Khalili, and a foreign ministry official were also injured when a video camera apparently exploded as the Arabs conducted an "interview" with Mr Masood.
"They are in the same hospital with Masood in Khwaja Bahauddin (Mr Masood's Takhar base)," Mr Salik said.
But the number two at the Afghan embassy in Dushanbe, Mr Mahayuddin Mehdi, said Mr Masood was still in northern Afghanistan, where his forces control a slice of territory.