Al-Qaida leaders hit by Pakistani forces

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan, June 17 (UPI) -- A senior al-Qaida military commander was allegedly killed in Pakistani operations along the volatile border with Afghanistan, intelligence reports say.

Qari Zia Rahman was reportedly killed by Pakistani forces in anti-Taliban operations in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas of Pakistan, various Asian news services report.

Rahman was allegedly a commander of a brigade of the so-called Shadow Army of al-Qaida operating in the Bajour district of FATA, the online Long War Journal reports, citing U.S. intelligence officials.

The Shadow Army contains members from several regional terrorist outfits operating in coordination with al-Qaida to take on U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan.

Meanwhile, Tahir Yuldashev, the commander of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, an al-Qaida-backed group, was reported wounded during clashes with Pakistani troops in the tribal regions.

The Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan operates in the Fergana Valley, which includes portions of Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. Following an Uzbek government crackdown in the 1990s, its members and sympathizers scattered across the region, including parts of Afghanistan.

These insurgents inevitably formed relationships with Taliban and al-Qaida militants prior to the U.S.-led invasion of Afghanistan in 2001, surfacing today in the volatile Swat Valley in Pakistan.

The Pakistani military has ramped up its efforts to tackle a growing Taliban insurgency in the volatile tribal areas following the collapse of a cease-fire agreement reached in March.