BBC: Taliban Leader Mullah Omar Dead

Local Editor

The leader of the Afghan Taliban, Mullah Mohammed Omar, died, Afghan officials say, but the militant group has not commented on the claim.

The terrorist died two to three years ago, Afghan government and intelligence sources said. No further details were released.

A Taliban spokesman contacted by the BBC said the group would issue a statement shortly.

There have been several reports of Mullah Omar's death in the past.

However, this is the first to be confirmed by top sources in the Afghan government.

His alliance with al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden prompted the US-led invasion of Afghanistan in 2001, in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington.

The Taliban militia won a series of victories under Mullah Omar's leadership.

Mullah Omar has since been in hiding, with a $10m US state department bounty on his head.

Over the years, the Taliban have released several messages purported to be from the fugitive leader.

The latest of these statements, from mid-July, expressed support for peace talks between the Taliban and the Afghan government.

However, the message was in the form of a text published on a Taliban website, rather than an audio or video recording - fuelling rumors that the leader was dead or incapacitated.

Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team