Pentagon is still assessing the results of the airstrike to determine whether he was killed. That confirmation could take 'days', a senior official told CNN. However, claims of Mullah Akhtar Mansourr's death were denied by a Taliban commander close to the man, who spoke to Reuters on condition of anonymity.
Afghanistan Taliban Leader Mullah Akhtar Mansour “Believed Killed in US Drone Strike”
Mullah Akhtar Mansour 'likely dead' after a US drone strike on Saturday. The U.S. military carried out an air strike targeting Afghan Taliban leader in a remote area of the Afghanistan-Pakistan border region earlier today, the Pentagon said.
For now, however, it is believed that Mansour and another male combatant were killed in the strike, which was authorized by President Barack Obama.
There was no collateral damage in the drone strike, officials told CNN.
However, claims of Mansour's death were denied by a Taliban commander close to the man, who spoke to Reuters on condition of anonymity.
"'We heard about these baseless reports but this (is) not (the) first time,' the commander said. 'Just wanted to share with you my own information that Mullah Mansour has not been killed.'"
This isn't the first time Mansour has been attacked: In December, he was reported wounded and maybe killed in a shootout at the house of another Taliban leader near Quetta in Pakistan.
But this time the U.S. was taking no chances, using multiple drones to attack him.
The strike took place at about 3pm local time on the Pakistani side of a remote area of the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, according to the official.
The drones targeted the men as they rode in a vehicle southwest of the town of Ahmad Wal.
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