Predator Drone. Photograph by Leslie Pratt/USAF
Hakimullah Mehsud, the leader of the Pakistani Taliban, has been killed in a drone strike.
The drone reportedly fired four missiles at a vehicle carrying Mehsud and four others in the Dande Darpa Khel in the north-western region of North Waziristan. All of those in the vehicle were killed in the strike, including Mehsud’s two bodyguards.
His death comes as Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif pledged to negotiate with the Taliban to bring an end to its campaign of violence and terrorism.
Mehsud was suspected to have been behind the deaths of thousands of people, with the FBI putting a $5 million FBI bounty on his head.
Mehsud’s death has previously been misreported on a number of occasions, although this is the first time that the group has confirmed his death themselves.
This drone strike is the latest in a series of blows targeting the leaders of the Pakistan-based militant group.