One of the Taliban's murderous leaders in Pakistan has been killed in a bomb attack.
Senior commander Abdul Wali died alongside two more members said to be high up in the Tehreek-e-Taliban (TTP).
Wali, also known as Omar Khalid Khorasani, was killed in Afghanistan's Paktika province on the border with Pakistan.
The militant had a bounty of around £2.5million on his head and is believed to have been travelling to the Barmal district of Afghanistan "for consultations".
The other two men were identified as Hafiz Dawlat and Mufti Hassan and the three were killed as their car hit a roadside mine.
The commander's death is a major blow to the Pakistani Taliban and comes only a week after infamous Al-Qaeda head Ayman Al-Zawahiri was killed in a US missile strike that hit a residential area in Kabul.
Wali is believed to have been close to Al-Qaeda.
The feared doctor, jointly responsible for the atrocities on 9/11 and the 1998 US embassy bombings, was targeted by US bladed 'ninja' missiles
No one has yet claimed responsibility for the killing of Wali, which occurred n Sunday night, but the TTP has blamed Pakistani intelligence.
Islamabad has recently been engaged in peace talks with the Taliban after the TTP escalated its attacks on Pakistan in 2021, reportedly emboldened by the takeover of Afghanistan after the withdrawal of NATO troops.
After top TTP officials were released in May, an "indefinite" ceasefire between the group and Pakistan was announced.
The militant was the head of the Jamat-ul-Ahrar (JuA), a splinter group from the TTP. It is officially designated a terrorist group by the US and is responsible for "multiple attacks in Pakistan targeting civilians, religious minorities, military personnel, and law enforcement".
The terror group claimed responsibility for a vicious suicide bomb attack on Punjab Home Minister Shuja Khanzada and 18 others in August 2015.
In 2016, the group said it had targeted Christians celebrating Easter at an amusement park in Lahore.
At least 300 people were injured and over 70 people were killed when suicide bomber approached the main gate to the Gulshan-e-Iqbal park and let off his device.
The bomb, police said, was detonated near the children's playground and contained ball bearings to maximise the fatalities.
A survivor said: "We went to a canteen to have something to eat, when there was suddenly a big blast.
"Everyone went panic, running to all directions. Many of them were blocked at the gate of the park. Dead bodies can be found everywhere."
