Taliban Leader Mullah Mansoor ‘Likely’ Killed In Pak-Afghan Border
MEP: A senior Taliban chief Mullah Akhtar Mansoor has reportedly killed following a U.S. airstrike Saturday along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border, US officials said.
The airstrike, authorized by President Barack Obama, also killed a second adult male combatant as the two traveled in a vehicle southwest of the town of Ahmad Wal, but no civilians were killed.
A senior Obama administration official told CNN that it would likely take several days to get “physical confirmation” because of the remote location of the area. The official was speaking under the condition of anonymity.
Mansoor, who is believed to be around 48, formally assumed the leadership of the Taliban last year following the death of Mullah Mohammad Omar.
The Pentagon branded Mansour “an obstacle to peace and reconciliation between the government of Afghanistan and the Taliban” and said he was actively involved in planning attacks that threatened U.S., Afghan and allied forces.
Meanwhile, Pentagon spokesman Peter Cook, confirming an air strike targeting Mansour in the Afghanistan-Pakistan border region, said Mansour had prohibited Taliban leaders from participating in peace talks with the Afghan government.
“We are still assessing the results of the strike and will provide more information as it becomes available,” Cook said.
The White House is awaiting official confirmation of Mansoor’s death before releasing their own statement about the strike, a senior White House official said.
