Top Taliban commander killed in US drone attack in North Waziristan

ISLAMABAD - A top Taliban commander and a prime accused in the US consulate bombing, Qari Zafar, has reportedly died in Wednesday’s drone attack in the Dandi Darpakhel area of North Waziristan.
According to sources, Zafar, a former member of the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, headed a group called Badar Mansoor. Most members of this group are believed to be from Punjab.

Zafar, who had a five million bounty on his head, had joined the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) in North Waziristan just before the Pakistani army launched an operation in South Waziristan against the banned extremists outfit.

He was recently seen in a video sitting next to the TTP chief Hakeemullah Mehsud, who is also believed to have died in a similar missile hit in January, The Dawn reports.

Wednesday’s missile attack targeted a stronghold of the Haqqani network.

This was the second such strike in the region in the last one week. On the previous occasion a son of Jalaluddin Haqqani was reportedly killed.

The air strike occurred in Danday Darpakhel village near Haqqani’s madrassa, four kilometers north of the agency headquarters.

The recent surge in drone attacks in Pakistan’s lawless tribal region replicates the White House’ concern in the region, as it knows that even though Islamabad is offering to negotiate with the proscribed extremist network, it is not doing enough against extremists based in terror hot beds based inside the country.

The Haqqani group, which has close links with the Al-Qaeda, command an estimated 4,000 fighters in south Afghanistan, who regularly target international troops in the region. (ANI)