Video Appears to Show Pakistan Taliban Leader Alive
VOA News
03 May 2010
A new video from the Pakistani Taliban appears to show its leader alive, rebutting claims he died in a missile strike early this year.
The video of Hakimullah Mehsud was released shortly after the Taliban said it was responsible for Saturday's attempted car bomb attack in New York City's Times Square. Pakistani and U.S. authorities say there is no evidence to back the claim.
In the video, Mehsud says reports of his death are lies and propaganda and says his message was recorded on April 4 of this year.
He does not specifically mention New York, but he promises attacks "coming to major American cities soon."
IntelCenter, a U.S.-based group that monitors Islamist websites, says it believes the video is credible.
Last week, Pakistani intelligence officials said they had information showing Mehsud was alive, but no longer a major force in the Pakistani Taliban movement.
U.S. and Pakistani officials had earlier been confident that Mehsud was killed in a U.S. missile strike in Pakistan's tribal region in January.
Some information for this report was provided by AP, AFP and Reuters.
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