KABUL – A US drone strike on Tuesday struck a compound of Tehrik-e-TalibanPakistan (TTP) in eastern Afghanistan, causing casualties, security sourcessaid.
Sources said a senior Pakistani Taliban leader Omar Rehman, known as UstadFateh, was scheduled to visit the house of a TTP leader Ahmad Swati, whenthe US drone fired two missiles on the building at 10am.
Spokesman for outlawed TTP Muhammad Khorasani did not reply to a query whenasked if the pilotless aircraft had hit Fateh, a former TTP commander inSwat and close confidant of Maulvi Fazalullah, who was killed in a dronestrike in Kunar on June 13.
A security source said the US drone targeted the Taliban commander inShultan district of Kunar, which is thought to be one of the majorsanctuaries on the Afghan side of the border.
Kabul-based Afghan Islamic Press also reported the drone strike had“killed” the TTP leader. There was no independent confirmation of thereport.
A source of the Taliban splinter group Jamaat-ul-Ahrar also confirmed thedrone attack but did not say whether or not it killed the Taliban leader.Fateh, a bomb-making expert, was among the few strong candidates to replaceFazalullah but the TTP leaders elected Mufti Noor Wali alias Abu MansoorAsim.
He was among the senior Taliban commanders, who had dodged thousands oftroops in Swat to escape, and later appeared in Afghanistan. He was alsoassociated with Jaish-e-Mohammad and was once arrested in connection withan attack on military dictator Pervez Musharraf in 2003.
If confirmed it would be another serious blow to the TTP, which is alreadyunder pressure due to a surge in US drone attacks and mounting pressure byPakistani forces.
Months before Fazalullah’s death, the TTP lost another influentialcommander Khan Said alias Sajna in a US drone attack in eastern Afghanistan.
Security officials insist that Pakistani Taliban groups operate from theAfghan border regions and routinely launch attacks on Pakistani borderposts.