Baitullah Mehsud

QUETTA (PAN): Qari Hidayatullah, a close aide to Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan chief Baitullah Mehsud, has rejected claims the militant leader was killed in a recent US missile strike.

A number of media outlets reported on Friday the al-Qaeda commander was killed along with his wife in Wednesday's drone attack on the house of his father-in-law in South Waziristan Agency.

Hidayatullah, who introduced himself a close ally of Mehsud, told Pajhwok Afghan News over the telephone on Saturday from an undisclosed location reports about Mehsud's death were baseless.

"He is very much alive and fit," insisted Hidayatullah, who accused the media of carrying the report without confirmation from the Taliban. He said a spokesman for the Tehrik-i-Taliban (TTP) head, Hakimullah Mehsud, would soon speak to the media.

"Our shura has decided to provide the media a video of Baitullah Mehsud in two or three days as evidence of his being alive," said Hidayatullah.

Later in the day, Hakimullah told journalists the dreaded warlord was alive, contradicting another aide Maulvi Abdul Wadood, who confirmed to Pajhwok Mehsud with killed along with his spouse.

According to Wadood, the Taliban shura was currently holding a meeting to choose a successor to Mehsud, who had deep links to Afghan militants.

He said there was an 85 percent chance of Mufti Wali-ur-Rehman succeeding Mehsud as TTP head. Most of Taliban leaders supported him for the position and a decision in this regard would be taken soon.

ma/mud