A senior Taliban leader who commanded one of Al-Qaeda's military units in north-western Pakistan is said to be among the 30 people killed in last week's drone attacks in the Khyber agency. Though there was no official confirmation, the Long War Journal — which has embedded reporters covering the war on terror in Afghanistan — reported the killing of Amin in detail on Monday.
On Thursday and Friday, the U.S.-controlled Predators struck thrice in the Tirah Valley of the tribal agency and Amin was reportedly killed while he was meeting members of the Lashkar-e-Islam — a Taliban off-shoot with a footprint in Khyber.
Amin was second-in-command to Mullah Fazlullah, who used to control the picturesque Swat area till the Army regained ground after a military operation. In 2009, the Army had announced a reward for his capture.
Amin was also commander of the Tora Bora Brigade, one of the six formations in Al-Qaeda's Shadow Army and was legendary for his brutality.
This is not the first time that Amin has been reported killed in anti-terrorist operations and with details seldom provided officially on the victims of the drone attacks, the possibility of the Taliban leader resurfacing are not being ruled out.
