Aid Agencies Evacuate Workers

International aid agencies evacuated most of their foreign staff from the northern Afghan city of Mazar-i-Sharif, the opposition stronghold looted by renegade defenders and threatened by the advancing forces of the Taliban religious army. A U.N. plane, the first to land, brought 15 U.N. employees and three aid workers to the Pakistani capital, Islamabad. A Red Cross plane landed later in the day with 17 workers from the Geneva-based humanitarian agency, then went back for 17 more. In all, 52 aid workers were expected in Islamabad. The evacuees were the first foreigners out of the city, which fell into chaos earlier this month when the Taliban appeared close to capturing it.