The Pakistani Taliban group, Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), has confirmed the killing of a senior leader of the group in an airstrike conducted by the US forces, like reported by khaama.com.
A TTP spokesman Mohammad Khurasani has confirmed to Reuters that TTP deputy Khalid Mehsud also famous as Khan Syed Sajna has been killed in a drone strike.
Khurasani however has said that Sajna was killed in North Waziristan tribal region of Pakistan, rejecting the previous reports that he was killed in Paktika province of Afghanistan.
“We confirm that deputy head of the TTP Khalid Mehsud died in a drone strike,” he told Reuters.
He also added that Pakistani Taliban chief Mullah Fazlullah appointed a commander called Mufti Noor Wali Wali to replace their dead deputy.
Militant sources said Wali, known by the nickname Ghar Starga, is a ruthless leader with experience working in Pakistani urban areas including the southern city of Karachi.
This comes as earlier reports suggested that Sajna was killed in a drone strike in Paktika province of Afghanistan last week.
The US forces carried out a series of airstrikes along the Durand Line and in North Waziristan tribal region of Pakistan, leaving several dead, including some militants of the notorious Haqqani terrorist network.
