Top al Qaeda commander killed in US drone strike

A top militant of Palestinian origin on the most wanted list of the FBI has been killed in a US drone strike in Pakistan's lawless Waziristan tribal belt as conflicting reports are emerging on the fate of Taliban chief Hakimullah Mehsud.

The Palestinian militant Jamal Saeed Abdul Rahim suspected to be involved in the September 5 1986 hijacking of a US Airliner Flight in Karachi was killed by American missiles fired on a Taliban hideout in Dattakhel village in north Waziristan, New York Times reported quoting Pakistani officials.

At least 20 passengers were killed in the hijacking and the US Government had announced a bounty of USD five million for the capture of Rahim.

The paper said American security and intelligence officials were yet to confirm the claims made by Pakistani officials. The FBI's Web site lists him as a Palestinian.

The Pakistani officials called him an Al-Qaida member, but the FBI site says he was a member of the Abu Nidal Palestinian terrorist group.

New York Times said, Pakistani officials claimed that Rahim had been tried and convicted in Pakistan but, was released in January 2008. If the Pakistani claims are proved correct, Rahim would be the third top Arab Al-Qaeda militant to have been killed in strikes by US drones.