Taliban Meeting to Chose Mehsud Successor

WANA: According to reports a meeting of the leaders of various Taliban factions was underway somewhere in South Waziristan to elect the new leader after killing of Taliban supremo Baitullah Mehsud in a drone strike.

There were reports they will choose a new leader and the names of militants Hakimullah Mehsud, Maulana Azmatullah and Wali-ur-Rehman have surfaced as possible successors.

Hakimullah Mehsud commands Taliban militants in three tribal regions of Orakzai, Khyber and Kurram and is said to be an important leader in the Taliban hierarchy.

Like Baitullah, Azmatullah also hails from the Shahbikhel, a sub-tribe of the Mehsuds. He is an important commander and a member of Taliban shura, or council of leaders. He leads the militants in South Waziristan, Tank and Dera Ismail Khan and his name first time surfaced in the media.

Wali-ur-Rehman is another shura member, and is a former spokesman for Baitullah.