(Previous Incident Code: T006cii )

Two Pakistani intelligence officials have said a suspected US drone strike in Pakistan’s North Waziristan killed a militant commander and his associate. However, initial reports from Xinhua account for one killed and one injured combatant. No civilian harm was reported.

The commander was identified as Qari Abdullah Dawar. Dawar had reportedly been walking with his associate near their mountain hideout in the Tor Tangai area of North Waziristan, which is said to be located along the border with Afghanistan. According to Xinhua he belonged to the Hafiz Gul Bahadur group, which is a faction of the TTP the Pakistani Taliban branch. Whereas, a single source claims him as a Haqqani Network member.

North Waziristan had been part of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas of Pakistan (FATA) before the president signed a bill to merge the areas with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province in May 2018.