Noor Wali Mehsud, the current leader of the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), has recently become the focal point of escalating violence between Pakistan and Afghanistan. This surge began following a Pakistani airstrike on October 9 in Kabul, which reportedly targeted an armored vehicle believed to be carrying Mehsud. The strike led to several days of intense cross-border clashes, temporarily halted by an uneasy ceasefire, further intensifying the already strained security relationship between Islamabad and the Afghan Taliban administration.
Who is Noor Wali Mehsud?
Known also as Mufti Noor Wali Mehsud and Abu Zar Azzam, Noor Wali Mehsud is officially listed on the United Nations Security Council’s ISIL (Da’esh) and Al-Qaida Sanctions List. He assumed leadership of the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) in June 2018, succeeding Maulana Fazlullah.
Under Mehsud’s command, the TTP has carried out numerous attacks within Pakistan, targeting security personnel, government facilities, and civilian areas. The group maintains ties with Al-Qaeda and is known to coordinate its activities with other regional terrorist organizations. Critically, the TTP has been accused of launching cross-border attacks from sanctuaries located in eastern Afghanistan.
According to UN records, as of November 26, 2022, Mehsud’s location was noted as Lamman, District Barmal, Paktika Province, Afghanistan. His inclusion on the UN sanctions list stems from his alleged involvement in “participating in the financing, planning, facilitating, or perpetrating of acts or activities” that support Al-Qaeda and its associated entities.
A Pakistani national originally from South Waziristan, Mehsud is also recognized as a religious scholar and the author of Inqilab Mehsud South Waziristan: From British Raj to American Imperialism, a book frequently referenced in discussions of the TTP’s foundational ideology. His leadership is credited in UN summaries for successfully unifying various militant factions under the TTP banner and rebuilding its organizational structure, which had previously been fractured by Pakistani military operations.
Mehsud was initially sanctioned by the UN committee on July 16, 2020, with the most recent update to his narrative summary on December 13, 2023. He continues to be subject to a global asset freeze, travel ban, and arms embargo under Security Council sanctions targeting individuals and groups linked to ISIL (Da’esh) and Al-Qaeda.
What happened in Kabul?
On October 9, an airstrike in Kabul, reportedly carried out by Pakistani security forces, targeted an armored vehicle believed to be transporting Mehsud. While Islamabad has not officially confirmed its involvement, the Afghan Taliban government denies that Pakistani militants are operating on its territory. This strike marks the first reported Pakistani operation inside Kabul since the 2022 U.S. drone attack that killed al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri.
The strike was quickly followed by several days of cross-border firing between Afghan and Pakistani forces, eventually leading to a de-escalation of hostilities. Mehsud later appeared in an online video, confirming that he was alive. Despite the ceasefire, the border region remains highly volatile, with both countries maintaining heightened security and reporting intermittent shelling in districts like Khost, Paktika, and North Waziristan since the October 9 incident.
These airstrikes and subsequent exchanges of fire have caused casualties on both sides of the Afghan–Pakistan border and led to temporary disruptions in civilian movement across several frontier areas.