Top Taliban Terrorist Killed by CIA Missile

A top Taliban aide has confirmed U.S. intelligence reports that a CIA missile strike has killed Baittulah Mehsud, one of Pakistan's most dreaded terrorists.

A Taliban commander, Mehsud had joined forces with al-Qaeda and was responsible for several violent attacks in Pakistan, among them the assassination of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto in 2007 and the bombing of a Marriott hotel last year.

The State Department had offered a $5 million reward for his death or capture, and it's unclear whether anyone will claim it for providing the information that allowed a remote-controlled drone aircraft to target his location at a family member's house.

According to villagers, the deadly strike occurred about 1 a.m. local time Wednesday in Zanghra, located in remote northwestern Pakistan. Four were killed, including one of Mehsud's wives, according to reports.

American officials were celebrating the elimination of someone who had "actively plotted against the United States, with American blood on his hands."

Even though successors to Mehsud are lined up, U.S. officials still consider his death a major victory.