Pak: US drone kills eight Taliban fighters

Two days after Pakistani Taliban appointed a new chief, a US drone today targeted one of the key commanders Waliur Rehman as it fired missiles on his stronghold in South Waziristan killing eight people, mostly militants and wounding another nine.

Two hellfire missiles were aimed at a suspected militant hide-out of Waliur Rehman and later Taliban fighters were seen removing dead bodies from the destroyed compound, Geo News reported quoting local residents.

It was not clear whether Rehman, who has been made 'Amir' of South Waziristan in a new power sharing deal with the new Pakistani Tehrik-e-Taliban (TTP) chief Hakimullah Mehsud, was near the compound.

Waliur Rehman has also been named as controller of all fighters and organisational setup of the TTP.

 The missiles struck in the Kani Guram area of South Waziristan. The same area was hit on Aug 11 in an attack that killed at least eight people, the TV channel said.

The US has stepped up missile attacks on the Taliban recently after their missiles scored a direct hit and killed feared former TTP chief Baitullah Mehsud.