Taliban chief killed in US missile strike

A senior Taliban commander wanted over the 2006 bombing of the US consulate in Karachi was killed in a suspected American missile strike in north-western Pakistan, the Pakistani Taliban confirmed today.

Mohammed Qari Zafar’s death, which was reported earlier by Pakistani intelligence officials, marks the latest success from Washington’s covert CIA-run drone programme in Pakistan.

The unmanned aircraft have carried out more than 100 missile strikes near the Afghan border since 2004, killing several senior Taliban and al Qaida leaders.

The Taliban described Zafar as a martyr in a statement faxed to local journalists today and pledged to avenge his death.

It is uncommon for the Taliban to confirm the death of one of their members in a missile strike.