US Drone kills 26/11 brain Ilyas Kashmiri

A spokesman for Kashmiris Harkat-ul-Jihad-al-Islami outfit,however,confirmed the killing and promised revenge.

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Top al-Qaeda militant Ilyas Kashmiri,a key planner behind the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks,was killed in a targeted US drone strike in Pakistans northwest late last evening,Pakistani media and local residents said.

But Pakistani and American officials cautioned that they had not been able to confirm his death. In New Delhi,U K Bansal,Secretary (Internal Security) in the Home Ministry,said,We are aware of media reports… But we are trying to verify it.

Kashmiri was earlier reported killed in a drone strike in September 2009,but he emerged to give an interview to the slain Pakistani journalist Syed Saleem Shahzad.

A spokesman for Kashmiris Harkat-ul-Jihad-al-Islami outfit,however,confirmed the killing and promised revenge.

Harkat-ul-Jihad al-Islami 313 Brigade confirms the martyrdom of our leader Ilyas Kashmiri in a US drone strike on June 3,2011 at 11.15 pm, HuJI spokesman Hanzala said in a hand-written fax message sent to Pakistani media groups. We will take revenge (for the killing of) our leader from the US.