File Photo: Unmanned US drone. (Associated Press)
The Pakistani Taliban today said a US drone strike in eastern Afghanistan had killed a senior commander who was a close associate of two of the group's former chiefs.
"Commander Khawery Mehsud embraced martyrdom in a US drone strike, along with two others, in Afghan territory" near the Pakistani tribal district of Kurram on Wednesday, said Taliban spokesman Muhammad Khurasani.
A Pakistani security official confirmed there was a drone strike in the area at the time.
Mehsud, who hailed from the South Waziristan tribal district, was among the founding members of the Pakistani Taliban when it was formed in 2007.
He was a close associate of its first and second leaders, Baitullah Mehsud and Hakimullah Mehsud, who were both killed in separate US drone strikes, Khurasani said in a statement.
"Khawery Mehsud was the key battle commander of Baitullah Mehsud and was a close associate and personal bodyguard of Hakimullah Mehsud," added the spokesman.
A NATO spokesman did not confirm the killing, but said: "There were two US forces precision strikes in eastern Afghanistan yesterday. One in Kunar and one in Khost," which borders Pakistan's Kurram area.