Welcome to DU!
The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards.
Join the community:
Create a free account
Support DU (and get rid of ads!):
Become a Star Member
Latest Breaking News
General Discussion
The DU Lounge
All Forums
Issue Forums
Culture Forums
Alliance Forums
Region Forums
Support Forums
Help & Search
Drone kills Taliban chief Hakimullah Mehsud; Pakistan accuses U.S. of derailing peace talks
Source: Washington Post
Drone kills Taliban chief Hakimullah Mehsud; Pakistan accuses U.S. of derailing peace talks
By Tim Craig, Updated: Friday, November 1, 6:54 PM
ISLAMABAD — A U.S. drone strike was said to have killed the chief of the Pakistani Taliban on Friday, potentially crippling the group while also undermining an effort by Pakistan’s government to engage militants in peace talks.
If verified, the death of Hakimullah Mehsud would be a victory for U.S. officials who have spent years hunting down a leader implicated in a 2009 attack that killed seven Americans at a CIA outpost in eastern Afghanistan.
But the drone strike also threatened to add to strains between the United States and Pakistan, whose new prime minister, Nawaz Sharif, had announced earlier in the day that his government would begin talks aimed at reaching a negotiated settlement with the group.
With that plan called off after the strike, Pakistan’s Interior Minister, Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, issued a statement accusing the United States of carrying out “a conspiracy to sabotage the peace talks.’’
[font size=1]-snip-[/font]
By Tim Craig, Updated: Friday, November 1, 6:54 PM
ISLAMABAD — A U.S. drone strike was said to have killed the chief of the Pakistani Taliban on Friday, potentially crippling the group while also undermining an effort by Pakistan’s government to engage militants in peace talks.
If verified, the death of Hakimullah Mehsud would be a victory for U.S. officials who have spent years hunting down a leader implicated in a 2009 attack that killed seven Americans at a CIA outpost in eastern Afghanistan.
But the drone strike also threatened to add to strains between the United States and Pakistan, whose new prime minister, Nawaz Sharif, had announced earlier in the day that his government would begin talks aimed at reaching a negotiated settlement with the group.
With that plan called off after the strike, Pakistan’s Interior Minister, Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, issued a statement accusing the United States of carrying out “a conspiracy to sabotage the peace talks.’’
[font size=1]-snip-[/font]
Read more: http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/pakistani-official-accuses-us-of-sabotage-as-drone-targets-taliban-leaders-in-northwest/2013/11/01/1463d0c2-431d-11e3-b028-de922d7a3f47_story.html