Intercepted militant radio communications indicate that Hakimullah Mehsud, the leader of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), may have been killed in a recent US drone strike, Pakistani intelligence officials said on Sunday, but a Taliban official denied the report. The claim that the TTP chief was killed came from officials who said they intercepted a number of Taliban radio conversations. In about a half a dozen intercepts, the militants discussed whether Mehsud was killed on January 12 in North Waziristan. Some militants confirmed Mehsud was dead, and one criticised others for talking about the issue over the radio. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to talk to reporters. Pakistani Taliban spokesman Asimullah Mehsud denied the group’s leader was killed and said he was not in the area where the drone strike occurred. In early 2010, both Pakistani and American officials said they believed a missile strike had killed Hakimullah along the border of North and South Waziristan. They were proved wrong when videos appeared showing him still alive.
Hakimullah Mehsud possibly killed
