Pakistani Taliban pick new No 2 after drone strike: Sources

[Devil Soul]

By Reuters Published: May 30, 2013
DERA ISMAIL KHAN: Pakistani Taliban militants have chosen a new deputy commander to replace their previous second-in-command who was killed in a US drone strike in the North Waziristan region, sources in the militant group said on Thursday.

The previous deputy commander, Wali-ur-Rehman, was killed in an attack by a missile-firing U.S. drone aircraft in the militant stronghold of North Waziristan, on northwest Pakistan’s border with Afghanistan, on Wednesday, Pakistani security officials and militants said.

A Pakistani Taliban committee met late on Wednesday to chose a new deputy after Waliur Rehman was buried in a low-key ceremony, three Taliban members told Reuters.

The Taliban members said the new number two, Khan Said, 38, had served as Rehman’s deputy. He was involved in planning a 2011 attack on a Pakistani navy base in Karachi in which 18 people were killed and a 2012 jail break in which nearly 400 militant inmates escaped, they said.

“There was absolute consensus over Khan Said,” one Pakistani Taliban member said.

Wednesday’s drone strike, that killed six other people, was the first in Pakistan since a May 11 general election in which strikes by the unmanned US aircraft was a major issue.

It was also the first reported US drone strike since President Barack Obama announced last week that the United States was scaling back the drone programme.

The Pakistani Taliban are a separate entity to the Afghan Taliban, though allied with them. Known as the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, they have launched devastating attacks against the Pakistani military and civilians.

Waliur Rehman had been tipped to succeed Hakimullah Mehsud as leader of the Pakistan Taliban and had been viewed as someone less hostile to the Pakistani military than some other top operatives.
PEACE EFFORT?
While his death is a major blow for the militants, it could be also viewed as a setback for incoming Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s efforts to end violence.

He criticised drone strikes during the election campaign, describing them at one point as a “challenge” to Pakistan’s sovereignty. Sharif also offered to hold talks with the militants, something that now looked less likely, according to one senior security official.

“Wali-ur-Rehman was a serious and mature man, his death could hurt prospects for an expected peace initiative considered by the new government,” the official told Reuters.

However, many observers said any meaningful settlement with the Taliban was unlikely in any case given Sharif’s condition that the starting point for talks be respect for the country’s democratic order and institutions.

The White House did not confirm the killing, in line with its practice not to discuss drone strikes.
But its spokesman Jay Carney said Wali-ur-Rehman “has participated in cross-border attacks in Afghanistan against US and NATO personnel and horrific attacks against Pakistani civilians and soldiers”.

Drones armed with missiles have carried out numerous strikes against militants in the North Waziristan Pashtun tribal region over the past seven years, sometimes with heavy civilian casualties.
A US drone killed Pakistani Taliban commander Baitullah Mehsud in 2009. There had been several reports that his successor, Hakimullah Mehsud, was killed the same way but they turned out to be false.

North Waziristan has long been a stronghold of militants including Afghan Taliban and their al Qaeda and Pakistani Taliban allies.

 

[A1Kaid]

Yet there were early denying he was killed in the strike, TTP pathetic liars at least have decency to accept the death of your second in command. It won't be long until Hakimullah Mehsud is terminated as well, once he goes hierarchy of TTP may find it difficult to maintain a cohesive organization, may even lead to intra-rivalaries within the TTP if they cannot manage smooth transitions of power.

 

[Gold1010]

Kill him.

///

 

[Pksecurity]

TTP’s lucrative Karachi enterprise may shut down after death of Wali-ur-Rehman Mehsud
Pakistani Taliban’s lucrative enterprise in Karachi will nearly vanish in the days to come after the death of its CFO, Wali-ur-Rehman Mehsud. Mehsud was killed in drone strike Wednesday in the village of Chashmapul, North Waziristan and buried the same evening. He was the man behind growing incidents of bank robberies in Karachi to provide funds for anti-Pakistan terrorist activities and fuel terrorist economy. The death of this Taliban commander would be a major blow to the extremist movement's operations. He is also believed to be the mastermind of the September 2008 attack on the Marriott Hotel in Pakistan's capital, Islamabad, in which more than 50 people were killed. He was also linked to the December 2009 attack on a CIA base in Khost, Afghanistan in which seven CIA employees were killed. He was so important for the Americans that they offered rewards of up to $5 million for information identifying his location.

Wali-ur-Rehman Mehsud raised finances for the TTP through a large and influential gang in the southern Pakistani seaport city of Karachi. The group specialized in carrying out bank robberies and kidnappings for ransom, and the money gained from those activities were used to fund TTP attacks. He was a mature strategist for TTP and was considered to be a skilled negotiator. In the event of negotiations with Pakistani state after the olive branch extended by political leadership thrown up in Pakistan’s recent elections, he was considered to be the chief negotiator. He was a former member of Fazal-ur-Rehman’s party, JUI (F) believed to be mother all militants and could become a bridge between the terrorists and the politicos. The initiation of dialogue has hit snags due to his death. It is generally believed that Americans have killed him to sabotage the intended talks.
There are others who believe that in the event of death of a strategist like Mehsud, the Taliban would be handicapped in continuing the fight and would feel compelled to go for negotiations. His death has really weakened the terrorists due to a potential squeeze on supply of cash if not in their fighting capability.

Pakistan Express: TTP's lucrative Karachi enterprise may shut down after Mehsud's death

 

[qamar1990]

naswarians kahan gye?

another guy pretending to be a girl?

 

[CENTCOM]

These terrorists have no remorse for killing thousands of innocents. They are only concerned with achieving their deadly objectives. They have a common goal of destabilizing the region with their acts of terror, and we shouldn’t be surprised that they have already found a replacement. At the same time, we need to remain vigilant against those who pose a threat to the safety of our nations. They’ve made it clear on several occasions that they see our nations as a common threat to their evil mission. In that case, there is no reason why we can’t work together to counter this threat. They are fully focused on destabilizing the region, and it only makes sense for us to combine our strength against these terrorists.

Ali Khan
DET, United States Central Command
U.S. Central Command

 

[Jango]

Didnt US FO deny the news?

 

[forcetrip]

Didnt US FO deny the news?

I didnt see him take the kill in the post. He just suggested that they might have a #2 already and that is just how the world turns and we should make an effort to kill their #10's together as well.

 

[PWFI]

These terrorists have no remorse for killing thousands of innocents. They are only concerned with achieving their deadly objectives. They have a common goal of destabilizing the region with their acts of terror, and we shouldn’t be surprised that they have already found a replacement. At the same time, we need to remain vigilant against those who pose a threat to the safety of our nations. They’ve made it clear on several occasions that they see our nations as a common threat to their evil mission. In that case, there is no reason why we can’t work together to counter this threat. They are fully focused on destabilizing the region, and it only makes sense for us to combine our strength against these terrorists.

Ali Khan
DET, United States Central Command
U.S. Central Command

I am sure you are talking about Nato

 

[Jango]

Breaking news: TTP confirm the killing of Wali-ur-Rehman in the drone strike.

 

[2ndslip]

They are all #2's.

 

[jaunty]

More good drones are needed to strike the bad Talibans.

 

[AUz]

Thats what make Al Qaeda, Talibans so dangerous. They aren't a terrorist organization but insurgent groups. They have a detailed mechanism of leadership and long chain of command.

Defeating them is even harder than defeating any regular army....

 

[Kompromat]

More good drones are needed to strike the bad Talibans.

Its not good or bad, its about useful and useless.