US confirms capture of senior Pakistani Taliban leader

US troops captured senior Pakistani Taliban leader Latif Mehsud in a military operation, a US official confirmed on Friday. "I can confirm that US forces did capture ... terrorist leader Latif Mehsud in a military operation," State Department deputy spokeswoman Marie Harf said, describing him as a senior commander in the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). Mehsud served as a senior deputy of Pakistan Taliban leader Hakimullah Mehsud, Harf said. The TTP said it was responsible for an attempted bombing in Times Square in New York in 2010. The group has also attacked US diplomats and civilians in Pakistan, Hardf said. Latif Mehsud was arrested as he was driving in the eastern Logar province district of Mohammad Agha, said the Logar governor, Arsallah Jamal. The road links the province with the Afghan capital, Kabul. The Pakistani Taliban confirmed the capture, but said Mehsud was seized by the Afghan army in the eastern province of Khost on October 5.