Hakimullah

Hakimullah Mehsud (c. 1980 – November 1, 2013), also known as Hakimullah Mehsoud, was a Pakistani militant commander who served as a senior leader and, at times, the emir of the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). He became the group’s nominal leader after the death of Baitullah Mehsud in 2009 and headed its operations in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas and along the Pakistan–Afghanistan border.

Mehsud belonged to the Mehsud tribe of South Waziristan. Public accounts of his early life are limited, but he emerged as a significant commander within the insurgent network that later coalesced into the TTP. As a leader, he oversaw a period of intensified militant activity, withthe TTP carrying out attacks against Pakistani security forces, police, and government targets, as well as cross-border operations claimed to be in pursuit of the group’s aims.

On November 1, 2013, Hakimullah Mehsud was killed in a United States drone strike in North Waziristan Agency, Pakistan. The strike was confirmed by Pakistani authorities and several intelligence sources, and several other militants were reported killed in the same operation. Following his death, the TTP elected Maulana Fazlullah as its new emir, continuing the organization’s insurgency.

Hakimullah Mehsud’s leadership marked a peak in the TTP’s operational reach during the early 2010s, and his death was a notable event in the broader context of the militant movement in Pakistan. The group remained active after his passing, adapting to leadership changes and ongoing military pressure.