Hakimullah confirmed dead, successor announced

The new TTP commander Noor Jamal administers a beating

A senior Tehreek-e-Taliban leader has confirmed the death of the organisation's leader, Hakimullah Mahsud, according to Pakistani reports. He said Hakimullah died near Multan as he was being taken to Karachi from South Waziristan for treatment for injuries sustained in a drone attack on Shaktoi, North Waziristan on 14 January. Around 10 other people were killed in the attack.
Some sources are saying his nominated succesor is Maulvi Noor Jamal, who comes from Orakzai region. Noor Jamal originally rose to prominence as leader of the TTP in the Kurram tribal area. When the Pakistani military offensive against the TTP began in South Waziristan in October, he was given additional responsibilities in the adjoining area of Orakzai.
Noor Jamal, who was a close friend of Hakimullah, has a reputation for cruelty. Videos are circulating showing him flogging two men and a teenage boy (see photo above). “He kills humans like one will kill chickens,” one resident who left Kurram last year because he was wanted by Noor Jamal’s men told Dawn newspaper.
Noor Jamal is said to be in his late 30s and was a teacher and prayer leader at a local religious school before he was appointed TTP leader in Kurram by Hakimullah.