Drone attack in Pak killed Taliban No. 2

Sources say Qari Hussain died on Oct 7,but no word from TTP

In a major setback to Taliban,missiles fired from US drones have killed its top commander and groups deputy chief Qari Hussain Mehsud,mastermind of many suicide attacks across Pakistan,sources claimed on Friday.

The drones hit a militant compound in Jungle Khel area near Miranshah,the main town in North Waziristan Agency,killing four militants including Qari Hussain on October 7.

There was no word from the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan on whether Qari Hussain,best known as a trainer of suicide bombers,had died in the attack.

A first cousin of the groups chief Hakimullah Mehsud,Qari Hussain is regarded as being highly skilled in training militants for suicide attacks. He trains such bombers in schools in South Waziristan.

As a senior commander of the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan,Qari Hussain took pride in recruiting individuals to carry out attacks on Pakistani and Western targets.

Until recently,his operations were primarily confined to Pakistan,but a video released on May 1 claimed Qari Hussain and his outfit were behind the foiled car bombing in Times Square by Faisal Shahzad. Shahzad was trained at a Hussain-run camp in South Waziristan,where he was brought by a Jaish-e-Muhammad intermediary named Mohammed Rehan.

Friends tell Pak to shape up for post-flood aid

Brussels: World powers on Friday told Pakistan that post-flood aid was part of a two-way deal on reform,as Islamabad also offered to lend a hand to regional peace by facilitating Afghan-Taliban talks.

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For Pakistan to become more stable,German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle said,you can harvest as much money as you want,it wont be enough at the end of the day if there is no reform.

The Friends of Democratic Pakistan meet came as the World Bank and Asian Development Bank estimated damages for Pakistans devastating floods since July at 9.7 billion.

British Foreign Secretary William Hague said that there are necessary reforms in Pakistan and they should include a widening of the tax base.

An EU source had said its a two-way street,indicating EU foreign affairs chief Catherine Ashtons view that unprecedented support cannot be expected without profound changes in the way Pakistan runs its economy. agencies