Col Imam died of heart attack

Colonel Imam,a former ISI official,was kidnapped along with a British TV journalist who was released in September and another former spy,Khalid Khawaja,who was executed by his captors in April. It is unclear why the two men travelled to the northwest,but they may have been acting as guides to the reporter.

Colonel Imams life personified some of the deep complexities of US and Pakistani policies toward insurgents in the region. His death in militant captivity was also shrouded in uncertainty,but appeared to indicate the extent to which some insurgents in the northwest had abandoned any loyalties to Pakistani intelligence agencies that nurtured an earlier generation of fighters.

Colonel Imam who was usually seen wearing a white turban and army camouflage jacket,played a major role in funneling Pakistani support and training to Afghans fighting Soviet rule in the 1980s,a push in large part financed by the CIA.

After the Soviets withdrew,he continued to be Pakistans point man with the Taliban,which were seen by Islamabad as allies. He provided the movement with arms,funding and training and was known to be close to Mullah Omar. He and Khawaja remained publicly sympathetic to the Afghan Taliban and Omar since the movements downfall in 2001 in the US-led invasion.

Some media reports have said Colonel Imam maintained operational ties with the Afghan insurgents in recent years,which he denied. In interviews before his kidnapping,he had spoken of the need to negotiate with the Afghan Taliban.

They two presumably felt their background and Islamist views offered some protection while traveling there. The region is now home to groups battling the Pakistan state.

A previously unknown militant group the Asian Tigers initially said it had seized the men. Analysts speculated the captors were a new breed of militants who had turned against their former protectors.

In July,Colonel Imam appeared on a video saying he was being held by another group and that it was demanding the release of prisoners held by the government in exchange for his release. Colonel Imams death was first reported Sunday,but officials could not confirm it. He was believed held in North Waziristan.

Hayat,the government official,said authorities were sure that he is dead but that militants still had Tarars body. He said the captors,whom he did not identify,were demanding $200,000 for its return.