Pakistan 'spy' shot dead by Taliban

JANUARY 26, 2009
MIRANSHAH, Pakistan (AFP) — Taliban militants shot dead a man and severed one of his hands in Pakistan's lawless northwest tribal region, accusing him of spying for the United States, an official said Monday.

The body of local tribesman Mohammad Hussain was found dumped in the mountains in the Datta Khel area of North Waziristan, a notorious hub of Taliban and Al-Qaeda militants.

"Hussain, who was kidnapped a week ago, had multiple bullet wounds in head and one of his hands was chopped off," a security official told AFP.

A note found on Hussain's body said he was "spying for the US," the official said.

Almost every week, militants kidnap and kill tribesmen, accusing them of spying for the Pakistani government or US forces operating across the border in Afghanistan, where Taliban fighters are leading an insurgency.

Pakistan's rugged tribal regions have been wracked by violence since hundreds of Taliban and Al-Qaeda rebels fled across the border to escape the US-led invasion of Afghanistan in late 2001.

Washington says these regions have become a safe haven for the Islamic behind the insurgency. (Photo AFP)