Pakistani Taliban commander shot dead in Waziristan

Asmatullah Shaheen was appointed as interim chief of the Pakistan Taliban following the killing of Hakimullah Mehsud, the previous leader, in a U.S. drone strike on November 1.

A top commander of the Pakistani Taliban was shot dead by unidentified gunmen on Monday in North Waziristan, security sources and family members in the tribal region told Reuters.
Asmatullah Shaheen was on the Pakistan army’s list of twenty most wanted Taliban commanders, and had had a $120,000 bounty placed on his head since 2009.
He was appointed as interim chief of the Pakistan Taliban following the killing of Hakimullah Mehsud, the previous leader, in a U.S. drone strike on November 1.
Shaheen’s killers ambushed his car as it passed through Dargah Mandi, a village 5 km (3 miles) northwest of Miranshah, the regional capital of North Waziristan.
“Unidentified gunmen in another car shot and killed Shaheen as well as the driver and guards,” a family member told Reuters.
Security sources also confirmed the deaths.
Peace talks between the Pakistani government and Taliban insurgents began on February 6 but broke down last week after insurgents said they executed 23 men from a government paramilitary force in revenge for the killing of their fighters by army forces.
Shaheen was considered one of the proponents of peace talks, according to sources close to the Taliban.
The failure to reach a negotiated settlement has raised the spectre of a major military offensive in North Waziristan, a region bordering Afghanistan.
On Sunday, Pakistani fighter jets attacked suspected militant hideouts in tribal areas on the Afghan border. The army said they killed at least 38 in the third air strike in recent days.
On Saturday, at least nine people were killed in similar strikes in Hangu district. On February 20, 15 suspected militants were killed when army jets bombed the Mir Ali area of North Waziristan.

Source: World Bulletin