DERA ISMAIL KHAN: A gunman shot dead on Tuesday a militant commander who was a rival to Pakistani Taliban leader Baitullah Mehsud, police said.

The militant commander, known as Qari Zainuddin, had recently given statements to the media opposing Mehsud. He was killed in the northwestern town of Dera Ismail Khan, police said.

‘I confirm that Qari Zainuddin has been shot dead,’ Salahuddin, superintendent of police in the city, told Reuters.

It was not clear who was behind the killing, he said.

Zainuddin was in his office when a man opened fire on him, local police official Salah-ud-din Khan told AFP. ‘Zainuddin was immediately shifted to hospital where he succumbed to his injuries,’ he said, adding that one of the tribal leader’s accomplices was also injured in the shooting.

Khan said Zainuddin was pronounced dead by doctors when his body reached the hospital in Dera Ismail Khan.

Another local police official Ghulam Rabbani also confirmed the incident, saying ‘Qari Zainuddin has been assassinated’.

Suspicion is likely to focus on Mehsud for Zainuddin’s murder.

The government has ordered the military to go on the offensive against Mehsud.

The military has launched air strikes on Mehsud’s bases in the South Waziristan region on the Afghan border.

The United States has offered a reward of $5 million on information leading to Mehsud’s location or arrest.

A Taliban faction leader who criticized the militant group’s Pakistani head has been shot dead, reportedly by one of his own guards.

Dr. Mahmood Khan Bitani told The Associated Press that he pronounced Qari Zainuddin dead on arrival Tuesday at a hospital in the northwest with gunshot wounds to the head and chest.

Baz Mohammad, an aide of the militant leader who also was wounded, says a guard barged into a room at Zainuddin’s compound after morning prayers and opened fire.

Zainuddin’s strong statements against Mehsud in recent days had led to speculation authorities were encouraging him to stand up to his rival, Mehsud.

Related Post

  • Random Post