A Taliban commander confirmed on Wednesday that the rebels' military chief in southern Afghanistan had been killed in a U.S. air strike on December 19, adding his death was a blow for the Islamist movement.
The U.S. military said last week Akhtar Mohammad Osmani, who had close links to Osama bin Laden, had been killed in an air strike in Helmand province -- a claim rejected by a Taliban commander and spokesman at the time.
But a senior Taliban commander who declined to be identified confirmed Osmani had been killed.
"He has died. We got this information on the day of the strike but our leadership ordered us not to disclose it," the commander, speaking by telephone, told a Reuters reporter in the Pakistani border town of Chaman.
"He was not only an experienced military commander but also good in making financial transactions for us. He had good contacts," he said, without elaborating.
"His death will have some bad impact on our movement for some time," he added.
Keep your heads up. There's more coming.
No comments:
Post a Comment