A top commander of the Pakistani Taliban was shot dead by unidentified gunmen on Monday in the militant stronghold of North Waziristan, security sources and family members in the tribal region told agencies.
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 US drone strike on 1 November. Shaheen’s killers ambushed his car as it passed through Dargah Mandi, a village 5km (3 miles) northwest of Miranshah, the regional capital of North Waziristan.
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 US drone strike on 1 November. Shaheen’s killers ambushed his car as it passed through Dargah Mandi, a village 5km (3 miles) northwest of Miranshah, the regional capital of North Waziristan.