High-Ranking Pakistani Taliban Leader Arrested in Afghanistan

Faqir reportedly led the Taliban in Bajaur for years...

Maulavi Faqir, the former second-in-command of the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP)

(KABUL Khaama Press) - According to reports a high-ranking Pakistan Taliban leader has been arrested by Afghan security forces in eastern Nangarhar province.

Maulavi Faqir, the former second-in-command of the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) was arrested along with four other suspected militants while he was trying to enter Pakistan’s Tirah Valley from eastern Nangarhar province of Afghanistan.

An Afghan intelligence official quoted by Dawn News Agency said, “Maulvi Faqir and his four accomplices who had entered Nangarhar from Bajaur Agency were apprehended near Basawal on Torkham Road near the border of Tirah Valley.”

Faqir reportedly led the Taliban in Bajaur for years, and he is also tied to some of al Qaeda’s top leaders, including the group’s emir, Ayman al Zawahiri. He was removed from power by chief Hakimullah Mehsud at a council meeting.

In the past, Faqir sheltered Ayman al Zawahiri and other senior al Qaeda leaders; one of the first US drone strikes in Pakistan targeted Zawahiri and other top commanders in an area controlled by Faqir.

Source: Khaama Press