Nato troops kill key Taliban leader

Nato-led troops launched a precision strike in Afghanistan today, killing a key Taliban commander near a town overrun by militants, a spokesman for the alliance said.

Col. Tom Collins said the strike near the town of Musa Qala killed a “high level Taliban leader” and was conducted in “full coordination with the government.”

Musa Qala, the town where a peace deal between village elders and government was in place since last October, was overrun on Thursday by Taliban fighters who disarmed local police, ransacked the district centre and hoisted their trademark white flag.