Pakistan, Afghanistan notified of anti-Taliban commander strike

US Secretary of State John Kerry said Sunday leaders of Pakistan and Afghanistan were notified of an airstrike that killed Taliban commander Mullah Akhtar Mohammad Mansour Saturday in Pakistan.

The United States notified Pakistan's government of the strike, Kerry said at a news conference in Myanmar.

"We have had longstanding conversations with Pakistan and Afghanistan about this objective with respect to Mullah Mansour, and both countries' leaders were notified of the airstrike," he added.

"And it is important for people to understand that Mullah Mansour has been actively involved in planning attacks in Kabul, across Afghanistan, presenting a threat to Afghan civilians and to the coalition forces that are there," Kerry said.

He added that Mansour "was directly opposed to peace negotiations."

"This action sends a clear message to the world that we will continue to stand with our Afghan partners as they work to build a more stable, united, secure and prosperous Afghanistan," Kerry said. "It is time for Afghans to stop fighting and to start building a real future together."

A US official said the drone strike occurred around 6 a.m. ET Saturday in a remote area of the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, southwest of the town of Ahmad Wal.

Pakistan on Sunday accused the United States of violating its sovereignty with a drone strike against the leader of the Afghan Taliban in a remote border area just inside Pakistan.

Source: MENA