In March 2000 he escaped and has since then been a low-profile member of the Northern Alliance. He has been described as "shrewd, short, and with an elfin smile." Khan has a reasonably good human rights record by Afghani standards.
During the Afghan Transitional Administration, Khan was military commander of western Afghanistan (until August 13, 2003 when President Hamid Karzai decreed that officials could no longer hold both military and civil posts) and remains the governor of Herat province.
He boasts a provincial army of 25,000 men.