US drone kill key Taliban leader in South Waziristan

By Sayed Jawad - 01 Dec 2012, 9:03 pm

A US drone fired two missiles into open fields in northwestern tribal belt on Saturday, killing a suspected militant, local security officials said.

The area is a stronghold of Pakistani warlord Mullah Nazir, who officials said was wounded in a suicide attack in the district’s main town of Wana on Thursday.

“The targeted militant is suspected to be a key Commander of Al-Qaeda linked Taliban group but his identity is immediately unclear,” a security official told AFP.

Another official confirmed the attack, saying that the man killed was a key operative.

“We suspect that the killed militant was a foreigner and a key commander. However, his identity and country of origin was not immediately clear,” he said.

In the meantime Senior government official Shahid Ali said two drone-fired missiles hit a vehicle on December 1 near the Sheen Warsak area, located close to the main town of Wana, killing a Yemeni militant and two others.

Saturday’s U.S. drone strike is the second of its kind in the afore-said area over the last three days. On Thursday, U.S. drones launched a strike in the same area, killing at least three suspected militants and wounding four others.

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