Iran denies killed Taliban leader was in the country

Iran yesterday denied reports that Afghan Taliban leader Mullah Akhtar Mansour entered Pakistan from the Islamic republic before being killed in a US drone strike, state media reported. Pakistani security officials told AFP on Sunday that the man killed on Saturday in the southwestern province of Balochistan, believed at the time to be Mansour, had just returned from Iran when his vehicle was attacked, reports AFP. US President Barack Obama on Monday confirmed that Mansour had been killed in a US air strike, hailing his death as an “important milestone” in efforts to bring peace to Afghanistan.Senior Taliban sources have also confirmed the killing to AFP, adding that a shura (council) was under way to select a new leader. Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Hossein Jaber Ansari was quoted by the official IRNA news agency on Monday as denying Mansour had been in the country before the attack.

 

Iran denies killed Taliban leader was in the country

Iran yesterday denied reports that Afghan Taliban leader Mullah Akhtar Mansour entered Pakistan from the Islamic republic before being killed in a US drone strike, state media reported. Pakistani security officials told AFP on Sunday that the man killed on Saturday in the southwestern province of Balochistan, believed at the time to be Mansour, had just returned from Iran when his vehicle was attacked, reports AFP. US President Barack Obama on Monday confirmed that Mansour had been killed in a US air strike, hailing his death as an important milestone in efforts to bring peace to Afghanistan.Senior Taliban sources have also confirmed the killing to AFP, adding that a shura (council) was under way to select a new leader. Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Hossein Jaber Ansari was quoted by the official IRNA news agency on Monday as denying Mansour had been in the country before the attack.