Khan Syed Mehsud: New TTP chief 'mastermind' behind major terrorist plots

A close friend of Hakimullah, he belongs to the same tribe as TTP founder Baitullah Mehsud.

Khan Syed Mehsud, alias Sajna, replaced Hakimullah Mehsud as the chief of Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) on Saturday.

Hakimullah Mehsud was killed in a drone strike on November 1 in North Waziristan Agency.

Earlier, Sajna had replaced Waliur Rehman Mehsud as TTP’s second-in-command after he was killed by a drone strike in North Waziristan on May 29, 2013.

Khan Syed, 37, who has not received modern or religious education, is revered in the TTP because of his bravery in the battlefield. He was a close associate of Baitullah Mehsud.

He was born in Zangara in Sararogh, a sub-division of South Waziristan, and belongs to Shabi Khel, a sub-tribe of Mehsud. The founder of TTP, Baitullah Mehsud had also belonged to the same tribe.

Sajna was a close friend of Hakimullah. He is said to have been a key figure behind many deadly attacks that took place across the tribal belt of Pakistan. He was one of the masterminds behind the assault on the PNS Mehran base and the prison break in Bannu, in which nearly 400 inmates were freed, last year.