Pakistani Taliban leader Hakimullah Mehsud is dead, top Pakistani government officials and Taliban leaders confirmed Wednesday, though some figures in the Al Qaeda-linked network deny the claim.
Rumors have swirled about Mr. Mehsuds status since he was reported to have died from injuries sustained in a US drone strike in mid-January. If the reports are confirmed, his death would mark the second Pakistani Taliban leader killed by the US in six months. Similar confusion also surrounded the death of the previous commander, Baitullah Mehsud.
The Associated Press reports that Pakistans interior minister and a senior intelligence official confirmed that Mehsud, who was in his late 20s, had died, though neither gave details about his death. I have credible information that he's dead but I don't have any confirmation, Pakistani daily Dawn quoted Interior Minister Rehman Malik saying on Wednesday. Mr. Malik also said that Qari Hussein, a senior Taliban commander and one of Mehsuds possible successors, may have also been killed.
Pakistani Taliban leader Hakimullah Mehsud is dead, say officials / The Christian Science Monitor - CSMonitor.com
Rumors have swirled about Mr. Mehsuds status since he was reported to have died from injuries sustained in a US drone strike in mid-January. If the reports are confirmed, his death would mark the second Pakistani Taliban leader killed by the US in six months. Similar confusion also surrounded the death of the previous commander, Baitullah Mehsud.
The Associated Press reports that Pakistans interior minister and a senior intelligence official confirmed that Mehsud, who was in his late 20s, had died, though neither gave details about his death. I have credible information that he's dead but I don't have any confirmation, Pakistani daily Dawn quoted Interior Minister Rehman Malik saying on Wednesday. Mr. Malik also said that Qari Hussein, a senior Taliban commander and one of Mehsuds possible successors, may have also been killed.
Pakistani Taliban leader Hakimullah Mehsud is dead, say officials / The Christian Science Monitor - CSMonitor.com