A Muslim from Sussex has been killed fighting for the Taliban in Afghanistan.

Officials for Islamic militant groups said today five British Muslims had been killed.

Abu Waheed, 26, from Crawley, Abdul Saleem, 25, from east London, and Zulfikar Ahmed, 28, from Leicester, were named as dead.

Hassan Butt of the British Al-Muhajiroun group, said: "Five of our British Muslim volunteers were martyred in Mazar-e-Sharif."

Mr Butt, speaking in the Pakistan capital Islamabad, refused to identify the other two.

The Northern Alliance seized Mazar-e-Sharif a week ago, starting a string of rapid victories which led to the fall of Kabul this week.

Mr Butt said: "We still believe that the Taliban has not been defeated.

"We will be sending more volunteers, money and weapons to them."

Last month another Muslim from Crawley was killed in American bombing raids on Afghanistan.

At the time Mr Butt said Yasir Khan, also from Crawley, had gone to Afghanistan to wage jihad (holy war) against the "unjust policies of America".

But a close friend of the sacked Gatwick Airport worker said Mr Khan had gone back to the Middle East to get married.

Nisar Ahmed, 43, said Mr Khan, of Bilberry Close, Bewbush, Crawley, had been planning the trip since the summer.

Mr Ahmed, chairman of the Eagles Cricket Club and one of Mr Khan's closest friends, said: "He was a very religious man and he prayed five times a day but we never believed him to be an extremist.

"For a Muslim that is quite normal and we were all quite envious that such a young man was so dedicated. We wished we could do it.

"He said he was going to Pakistan to find a wife but I told he him couldn't go because he's a good player and we need him in the team.

"But he said he was definitely going to go because he wanted to find a wife and get married."

Mr Khan, 28, was sacked from his job at the airport two days after the attacks on the World Trade Centre because he refused to switch from his job of driving and loading meals onto airliners.

His employers, LSG Sky Chefs, wanted him to do other work while planes were grounded in the aftermath of the attacks.

Rubina Shamin, chairwoman of the Crawley Kashmiri Women's Welfare Association, said: "All of us Muslims condemn the way these people are going out to Afghanistan claiming to be fighting for jihad.

"All religions have fundamentalists but in our religion we practice in much the same way as Christians in that we totally condemn innocent killing. This is sad."