ISLAMABAD, Sept. 6 (UPI) -- A suspected U.S. drone strike in Pakistan's tribal region killed a man listed by the United States as a "specially designated global terrorist," residents said.
The New York Times cited reports from security officials and residents in the Dargah Mandi district of North Waziristan who said the strike late Thursday killed six people, including Mullah Sangeen Zadran, described as a top leader in the Haqqani Network and the Taliban's shadow governor in Afghanistan's Paktila province.
Another reported victim, Zubair al Muzi, 32, was said to be an explosives expert from Egypt involved in training Afghan militants.
When the United Sates declared Zadran "a specially designated global terrorist" in 2011, he was said to have brought foreign fighters to Afghanistan and to be a "senior lieutenant" to Sirajuddin Haqqani. The Haqqani Network was founded by Sirajuddin's father, Jalaluddin Haqqani, originally to fight the Soviets in Afghanistan.
Saifullah Mahsud, director of the FATA Research Center in Islamabad, said Zadran was a major force in the network.
"Sangeen was running the show, practically," Mahsud told the Times. "Siraj is the big name. But on the ground, whatever is conducted, is directed by Sangeen."
