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| Drone Strikes Are Said to Kill Taliban Chief | Drone Strikes Are Said to Kill Taliban Chief |
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| LONDON — American drones on Friday killed the leader of the Pakistani Taliban, dealing a major blow to a militant group that has terrorized Pakistan and that tried to set off a car bomb in New York City in 2010, according to Pakistani intelligence officials and militant commanders in the tribal belt. | LONDON — American drones on Friday killed the leader of the Pakistani Taliban, dealing a major blow to a militant group that has terrorized Pakistan and that tried to set off a car bomb in New York City in 2010, according to Pakistani intelligence officials and militant commanders in the tribal belt. |
| The death of the leader, Hakimullah Mehsud, is a signal achievement for the covert C.I.A. program at a time when drones themselves have come under criticism from human rights groups and other critics in Pakistan and the United States over the issue of civilian casualties. | The death of the leader, Hakimullah Mehsud, is a signal achievement for the covert C.I.A. program at a time when drones themselves have come under criticism from human rights groups and other critics in Pakistan and the United States over the issue of civilian casualties. |
| While prior reports of Mr. Mehsud’s death have proved false — ultimately serving only to burnish his credentials as an untouchable renegade — within hours there was a strong sense from multiple sources, including two American defense officials, that this time he had not escaped. | |
| “Hakimullah has been martyred,” said a local Taliban commander, speaking by phone from the tribal belt on the condition of anonymity. Pakistani officials backed up that assessment. | “Hakimullah has been martyred,” said a local Taliban commander, speaking by phone from the tribal belt on the condition of anonymity. Pakistani officials backed up that assessment. |
| The death offered relief to many Pakistanis. In recent years the Pakistani Taliban — who are related to, but operate independently of, the Afghan Taliban — have killed thousands of people, mostly through suicide bombings. The group has drawn the Pakistani Army into a grinding conflict in the tribal belt, and it has destabilized the rest of the country through a relentless campaign of violence. | The death offered relief to many Pakistanis. In recent years the Pakistani Taliban — who are related to, but operate independently of, the Afghan Taliban — have killed thousands of people, mostly through suicide bombings. The group has drawn the Pakistani Army into a grinding conflict in the tribal belt, and it has destabilized the rest of the country through a relentless campaign of violence. |
| To the C.I.A., the demise of Mr. Mehsud, a showy man in his mid-30s with a flair for publicity as well as bloodshed, represents a payback of sorts. | |
| He orchestrated a suicide attack on a spy base in eastern Afghanistan in 2009 that killed seven American C.I.A. employees, and later trained Faisal Shahzad, a Pakistani-American who tried to attack Times Square in May 2010. | |
| Mr. Mehsud had a $5 million United States government bounty on his head. But Mr. Mehsud’s death also comes at a delicate time. Just last week Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif of Pakistan, who strenuously opposes drone strikes, met with President Obama at the White House to express that opposition. | Mr. Mehsud had a $5 million United States government bounty on his head. But Mr. Mehsud’s death also comes at a delicate time. Just last week Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif of Pakistan, who strenuously opposes drone strikes, met with President Obama at the White House to express that opposition. |
| Mr. Sharif’s plans to engage in peace talks with the Pakistani Taliban have also been thrown into disarray — and possibly rendered unnecessary — by Friday’s attack. Instead, enraged Taliban commanders have vowed to repay Mr. Mehsud’s killing in bloodshed. “Our revenge will be unprecedented,” Abu Omar, a Taliban commander in North Waziristan, said by phone on Friday. | Mr. Sharif’s plans to engage in peace talks with the Pakistani Taliban have also been thrown into disarray — and possibly rendered unnecessary — by Friday’s attack. Instead, enraged Taliban commanders have vowed to repay Mr. Mehsud’s killing in bloodshed. “Our revenge will be unprecedented,” Abu Omar, a Taliban commander in North Waziristan, said by phone on Friday. |
| Mr. Omar said he considered the Pakistani government “fully complicit” in the drone strike. “We know our enemy very well,” he said. | Mr. Omar said he considered the Pakistani government “fully complicit” in the drone strike. “We know our enemy very well,” he said. |
| Friday’s strike occurred in Danday Darpa Khel, a small village and well-known militant stronghold in the North Waziristan tribal agency, near the Afghan border. | |
| Pakistani officials said C.I.A.-operated drones had fired at least four missiles at a compound that had been built for Mr. Mehsud about a year ago and that he had used intermittently since then. | Pakistani officials said C.I.A.-operated drones had fired at least four missiles at a compound that had been built for Mr. Mehsud about a year ago and that he had used intermittently since then. |
| One Pakistani official, citing intelligence reports, said that besides Mr. Mehsud, three other people were killed in Friday’s attack, including Mr. Mehsud’s uncle and a bodyguard. Two other people were wounded. The Pakistani official said Abdullah Behar, Mr. Mehsud’s deputy, also had died in the strike. Mr. Behar had just taken over from Latif Mehsud, a militant commander who was detained by American forces in Afghanistan last month. | One Pakistani official, citing intelligence reports, said that besides Mr. Mehsud, three other people were killed in Friday’s attack, including Mr. Mehsud’s uncle and a bodyguard. Two other people were wounded. The Pakistani official said Abdullah Behar, Mr. Mehsud’s deputy, also had died in the strike. Mr. Behar had just taken over from Latif Mehsud, a militant commander who was detained by American forces in Afghanistan last month. |
| Caitlin M. Hayden, a White House spokeswoman, said in a written statement that the Obama administration was not in a position to confirm reports of Mr. Mehsud’s death. But if true “this would be serious loss for the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP),” the statement said, using the official title of the Pakistani Taliban. | Caitlin M. Hayden, a White House spokeswoman, said in a written statement that the Obama administration was not in a position to confirm reports of Mr. Mehsud’s death. But if true “this would be serious loss for the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP),” the statement said, using the official title of the Pakistani Taliban. |
| And while the C.I.A. declined to comment, an American defense official with knowledge of the strike said the United States was confident that Mr. Mehsud was dead. | |
| The Americans tracking Mr. Mehsud were “nearly certain” of his location ahead of the strike, the American official said, and collected intelligence afterward that led them to conclude he was dead. | The Americans tracking Mr. Mehsud were “nearly certain” of his location ahead of the strike, the American official said, and collected intelligence afterward that led them to conclude he was dead. |
| Tribesmen said they planned to bury Mr. Mehsud on Saturday, when Mr. Sharif is scheduled to return to Pakistan from London, where he has been holding talks with British officials and the Afghan president, Hamid Karzai. | Tribesmen said they planned to bury Mr. Mehsud on Saturday, when Mr. Sharif is scheduled to return to Pakistan from London, where he has been holding talks with British officials and the Afghan president, Hamid Karzai. |
| Elsewhere in Pakistan, reports of Mr. Mehsud’s death met an uneasy welcome. | Elsewhere in Pakistan, reports of Mr. Mehsud’s death met an uneasy welcome. |
| Some celebrated the demise of a ruthless militant who was responsible for much suffering and had evaded longstanding Pakistani efforts to capture or kill him. | Some celebrated the demise of a ruthless militant who was responsible for much suffering and had evaded longstanding Pakistani efforts to capture or kill him. |
| “All peace-loving Pakistanis should be satisfied that a monster who had unleashed terror in Pakistan and elsewhere is dead,” said Pervez Musharraf, the former military leader, who is under house arrest. | “All peace-loving Pakistanis should be satisfied that a monster who had unleashed terror in Pakistan and elsewhere is dead,” said Pervez Musharraf, the former military leader, who is under house arrest. |
| But the interior minister, Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, described the American action as a calculated blow against the fledgling peace process. | But the interior minister, Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, described the American action as a calculated blow against the fledgling peace process. |
| A delegation of three clerics from Punjab Province whom Mr. Sharif handpicked had been scheduled to travel to the tribal belt on Saturday to begin talks with the Pakistani Taliban and two other militant groups. The group has now been stopped from proceeding, a senior security official said. | A delegation of three clerics from Punjab Province whom Mr. Sharif handpicked had been scheduled to travel to the tribal belt on Saturday to begin talks with the Pakistani Taliban and two other militant groups. The group has now been stopped from proceeding, a senior security official said. |
| And on the heated television talk shows, where public opinion is shaped, conservative politicians vigorously condemned the strike. | And on the heated television talk shows, where public opinion is shaped, conservative politicians vigorously condemned the strike. |
| Imran Khan, the former cricket player whose party rules Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Province, said he would seek to block NATO supply lines in retaliation; one of his deputies called for the Pakistani military to attack American drones. “Now, one thing is proven,” Mr. Khan said in a television interview. “Whenever Pakistan has attempted talks, drone attacks have sabotaged them.” | Imran Khan, the former cricket player whose party rules Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Province, said he would seek to block NATO supply lines in retaliation; one of his deputies called for the Pakistani military to attack American drones. “Now, one thing is proven,” Mr. Khan said in a television interview. “Whenever Pakistan has attempted talks, drone attacks have sabotaged them.” |
| On Twitter, Bilawal Bhutto, a leader of the opposition Pakistan People’s Party, mocked Mr. Khan’s stance, telling him he was “so sorry for your loss.” | On Twitter, Bilawal Bhutto, a leader of the opposition Pakistan People’s Party, mocked Mr. Khan’s stance, telling him he was “so sorry for your loss.” |
| Many ordinary Pakistanis, however, voiced fears of a violent backlash led by militants carrying out suicide attacks across the country. Seth Jones, a militancy expert at the RAND Corporation in Washington, said such a reaction was likely. | Many ordinary Pakistanis, however, voiced fears of a violent backlash led by militants carrying out suicide attacks across the country. Seth Jones, a militancy expert at the RAND Corporation in Washington, said such a reaction was likely. |
| He noted that just after the C.I.A. killed the Pakistani Taliban’s previous leader, Baitullah Mehsud, in August 2009, the group then put together the plot to explode a bomb in Times Square. | He noted that just after the C.I.A. killed the Pakistani Taliban’s previous leader, Baitullah Mehsud, in August 2009, the group then put together the plot to explode a bomb in Times Square. |
| While Mr. Mehsud’s death is a serious blow to the Pakistani Taliban, Mr. Jones said, this time it is more than able to replace him. “This won’t be lethal for the TTP,” he said. | While Mr. Mehsud’s death is a serious blow to the Pakistani Taliban, Mr. Jones said, this time it is more than able to replace him. “This won’t be lethal for the TTP,” he said. |
| Although the Pakistani leadership regularly condemns drone attacks, a growing body of evidence suggests that it has quietly cooperated with at least some strikes over the years. | Although the Pakistani leadership regularly condemns drone attacks, a growing body of evidence suggests that it has quietly cooperated with at least some strikes over the years. |
| Still, after the strike on Friday, Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry issued a pro forma condemnation, employing the usual language about the American action’s being a violation of Pakistan’s “sovereignty and territorial integrity.” | Still, after the strike on Friday, Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry issued a pro forma condemnation, employing the usual language about the American action’s being a violation of Pakistan’s “sovereignty and territorial integrity.” |
| Hours before the strike, three American congressmen and the American ambassador to Pakistan, Richard G. Olson, met with Sartaj Aziz, the prime minister’s adviser on national security and foreign affairs, in Islamabad. In a statement, the Foreign Ministry said Mr. Aziz had “expressed satisfaction at the upward trajectory in bilateral relations between Pakistan and the United States.” | Hours before the strike, three American congressmen and the American ambassador to Pakistan, Richard G. Olson, met with Sartaj Aziz, the prime minister’s adviser on national security and foreign affairs, in Islamabad. In a statement, the Foreign Ministry said Mr. Aziz had “expressed satisfaction at the upward trajectory in bilateral relations between Pakistan and the United States.” |
| The leader of the American congressional delegation, Representative Adam Kinzinger, an Illinois Republican, would not explicitly confirm Mr. Mehsud’s death, but in a statement after the strike, he said, “I congratulate the hard work of those protecting us and mourn the loss of those killed in past attacks by this man.” | The leader of the American congressional delegation, Representative Adam Kinzinger, an Illinois Republican, would not explicitly confirm Mr. Mehsud’s death, but in a statement after the strike, he said, “I congratulate the hard work of those protecting us and mourn the loss of those killed in past attacks by this man.” |
Declan Walsh reported from London; Ihsanullah Tipu Mehsud from Islamabad, Pakistan; and Ismail Khan from Peshawar, Pakistan. | Declan Walsh reported from London; Ihsanullah Tipu Mehsud from Islamabad, Pakistan; and Ismail Khan from Peshawar, Pakistan. Mark Mazzetti contributed reporting from Washington; Matthew Rosenberg from Kabul, Afghanistan; and Salman Masood from Islamabad. |