File of man reported to be new head of Pakistani Taliban скачать в хорошем качестве

File of man reported to be new head of Pakistani Taliban

(22 Aug 2009) SHOTLIST 1. Pakistani Taliban commander Hakimullah Mehsud (third from left in light brown blanket) walking at the front of the group 2. Hakimullah Mehsud greeting supporters 3. Hakimullah Mehsud and supporters firing at aircraft, AUDIO: gunfire and cheering 4. Hakimullah Mehsud sitting on ground eating 5. Hakimullah Mehsud giving statement, surrounded by masked Taliban 6. Hakimullah Mehsud inside humvee, allegedly captured from American forces STORYLINE Leading Pakistani Taliban commander Hakimullah Mehsud has been appointed the new head of the militant group, the aide to another commander said on Saturday. Bakht Zada, a close aide to commander Maulvi Faqir Mohammad, told The Associated Press that a 42-member Taliban council, or shura, appointed a new head because Taliban chief Baitullah Mehsud was ill. Washington and Islamabad have said Baitullah Mehsud was almost certainly killed by an August 5 Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) missile strike, but top Taliban commanders deny that although they have provided no proof he is still alive. A captured Taliban spokesman reportedly acknowledged to authorities earlier this week that Baitullah was dead. Hakimullah Mehsud, the 28-year-old military chief of Baitullah's Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, or Pakistani Taliban Movement, commanded three tribal regions and has a reputation as Baitullah's most ruthless deputy. He had been considered one of the top contenders to take over. Authorities have said he has been behind threats to foreign embassies in Islamabad, and there is a 10 (m) million rupee (120-thousand US dollar) bounty on his head. His men have been blamed for attacking US and NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organisation) supply convoys. He claimed responsibility for the June 9 bombing of the Pearl Continental hotel in Peshawar, and the attack on the Sri Lankan cricket team in Lahore earlier this year. Pakistan's Taliban is a loose alliance of disparate groups and tribal factions, and government and intelligence officials have said they are embroiled in a bitter leadership struggle which could lead them to deny their leader is dead until a firm replacement is found. Zada said the shura had spoken by phone to Faqir Mohammad and Maulana Fazlullah, the notorious commander of the Taliban in Pakistan's northern Swat Valley, to offer them the slot, but that they both refused citing personal reasons. He said the two, who are believed to be in their 50s, said they were not young enough to assume the leadership of the militants. Another close Mohammad aide, Sher Zamin, also confirmed that Hakimullah had been elected as the new Taliban chief. On Wednesday, Mohammad told The Associated Press he himself had assumed the role of acting head of the Taliban until the shura could appoint a new leader, because Baitullah was too ill to lead. Zada said Baitullah wanted to appoint someone else to lead the Taliban because of his ill health. He said the shura was held in Orakzai Agency in northwestern Pakistan's lawless tribal area, along the border with Afghanistan. Members of the Mehsud tribe use the same last name. Hakimullah Mehsud met journalists for the first time in November 2008, when he offered to take them on a ride in a US Humvee taken from a supply truck heading to Afghanistan. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter:   / ap_archive   Facebook:   / aparchives   ​​ Instagram:   / apnews   You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...