Summary Mullah Nazir was the main militant commander in South Waziristan.
MIR ALI: US drone strikes killed a prominent warlord along with nine other militants in Pakistan s tribal belt.
Mullah Nazir was the main militant commander in South Waziristan, part of the tribal zone where militants linked to the Taliban and Al-Qaeda have bases on the Afghan border. He is one of the highest-profile drone victims in recent years.
Pakistani officials said an unmanned US aircraft fired two missiles at his vehicle in the Sar Kanda area of Birmil in South Waziristan, killing Nazir and five of his loyalists, including two senior deputies.
"Mullah Nazir and five associates died on the spot," one of the officials told AFP on condition of anonymity.
He said the attack happened at 10:35 pm on Wednesday (1735 GMT) but that it took time to confirm the reports from such a far-flung and mountainous area.
Another Pakistani official said Nazir, believed to have been in his late 30s, was targeted as he prepared to swap vehicles after his pick-up developed a mechanical fault.
Two of his influential deputies, Atta Ullah and Rafey Khan, were among those killed, the official added.
Local residents told AFP that funeral prayers were said for Nazir and his associates around 10 kilometres (six miles) west of Wana, the main town in South Waziristan, and markets and shops closed.
In the neighbouring district of North Waziristan, two more missiles fired from a US drone killed four other militants on Thursday but their identities were not immediately known, other Pakistani security officials said.
Nazir s fighters have long been targeted by US drone strikes.
Covert US drone strikes are publicly criticised by the Pakistani government as a violation of sovereignty, but American officials believe they are a vital weapon in the war against Islamist militants.
