- Title: PAKISTAN: Rival to Pakistan Taliban commander Mehsud killed
- Date: 24th June 2009
- Summary: DERA ISMAIL KHAN, PAKISTAN (JUNE 23, 2009) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF BAAZ MOHAMMAD COMPANION OF MURDERED MILITANT COMMANDER QARI ZAINUDDIN, ON A STRETCHER DOCTORS TREATING INJURED MOHAMMAD
- Embargoed: 9th July 2009 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Pakistan
- Country: Pakistan
- Reuters ID: LVA6U3IDV7DIKDTKCKSNG3A4MZDT
- Story Text: An unidentified gunman killed a rival of Pakistani Taliban leader Baitullah Mehsud on Tuesday (June 23), police said, dealing a potential blow to a government plan to defeat al Qaeda ally Mehsud.
The murder came as the military prepares an offensive against Mehsud, who has been accused of a string of bomb attacks including the assassination of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto in 2007.
The murdered militant commander, known as Qari Zainuddin, had recently spoken out strongly against Mehsud and may have been about to mount a challenge against him.
He was killed in the northwestern town of Dera Ismail Khan, police said.
"We offered our morning prayers and then Qari sahib and I went back to sleep. Suddenly a man entered the room and started firing. Qari sahib was martyred," Baaz Mohammad, a close companion of Qari Zainuddin, told Reuters Television from a hospital where he was taken after getting injured in the attack.
"I think that those companions of Baitullah Mehsud who had joined us recently after getting amnesty from us, were behind the attack," Mohammad added.
Militants are split into several factions in northwest Pakistan, some of which are rivals.
The military went on the offensive against Taliban fighters allied with Mehsud in the Swat valley, northwest of Islamabad, in early May and they are in the final phase of that operation, the army has said.
The government has also ordered an offensive against Mehsud in his South Waziristan stronghold near the Afghan border.
Zainuddin's strong statements against Mehsud in recent days had led to speculation authorities were encouraging him to stand up to his rival.
Suspicion for his murder has fallen on Mehsud, who was accused of being behind the killing of a prominent anti-Taliban cleric in a suicide bomb attack in the city of Lahore this month.
A security analyst said Zainuddin's killing was a setback for government efforts against Mehsud but authorities should not depend on Mehsud's rivals to get rid of him.
Government and military spokesmen were not available for comment. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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