Bin Laden was accompanied by five top aides and ten Taliban guards posted on him when he left his base outside the city of Kandahar in southern Afghanistan last Friday for some unknown place, the private agency said.

AIP quoted the ruling Taliban militia sources as saying they could not confirm that the millionaire Saudi dissident, being hunted by the United States on terrorism charges, had left Afghanistan.

Differences cropped up between bin Laden and his hosts in recent days when Taliban took away communications facilities from him and put him under watch following talks with US and British officials on his activities, the agency said, quoting ``reliable sources''.