The former mujahideen leader in Afghanistan, Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, has called for the withdrawal of foreign troops from the country.

In an audio-cassette delivered to a BBC correspondent, Mr Hekmatyar described foreign troops as occupation forces and said the United States was effectively ruling the country.

He accused foreign forces of fuelling instability in Afghanistan by pitting non-Pashtun fighters from the Northern Alliance against Pashtuns.

Mr Hekmatyar led the Hezbi-i-Islami faction during the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan and was briefly prime minister in the first mujahideen administration.

He returned from exile in Iran earlier this year, but did not join forces with the new administration and has faded from the public eye.

A BBC regional analyst says although it is unclear how much support he still enjoys, Mr Hekmatyar's statement suggests he may be trying to reposition himself as a political figure inside Afghanistan.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service