Pakistan confirms Mullah Akhtar Mansour's death in drone attack
Country's Adviser to the Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs, Sartaj Aziz was quoted as saying to Dawn News: "All indicators confirm that the person killed in the drone strike was Mullah Mansour, who was travelling on a fake identity."
"The body will not be handed over till we get the DNA report," he said.
Meanwhile, the Afghan Taliban apparently named Mawlawi Haibatullah Akhundzada as their new leader following the death of Mullah Akhtar Mansour, media reported on Wednesday.
BBC, quoting a statement issued by the Taliban, said, "the Taliban acknowledged Mansour's death for the first time and named his successor as Mawlawi Haibatullah Akhundzada."
CNN International too quoted a Taliban statement that said, "The Islamic Emirate's leadership council... decided to appoint Mawlawi Haibatullah Akhundzada as the new leader of the Islamic Emirate and Mawlawi Sirajuddin Haqqani and Mawlawi Mohammad Yaqoob as his deputies."
Little is known about the leader except that Mawlawi Haibatullah Akhundzada is a religious scholar and former head of the Taliban courts, and known for announcing many of the 'fatwas', media reported.
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