Faction of Pakistani Taliban announces breakaway

Move by part of Mehsud tribe follows Pakistani military strategy of pitting militant factions against each other

Azam Tariq, a spokesman for the breakaway group, accused the Pakistani Taliban of criminality and targeting civilians. Photograph: Nasir Ahmed Mehsud/AFP/Getty Images

Agence France-Presse in Miranshah

Agence France-Presse in Miranshah

A major faction of the Pakistani Taliban has announced it is splitting from the militant outfit following bloody clashes with a rival group since March.

Observers said the split was a victory for the Pakistani military's strategy of pitting militant factions against each other while gaining the loyalty of key commanders.

Peace talks between the government and Taliban that began this year have stalled, with the military last week resorting to air strikes on militant hideouts, killing at least 75 people.

The breakaway faction belongs to the Mehsud tribe, widely considered the most important of the various groups that comprise the umbrella Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), which has fought the government since 2007 to implement its version of sharia law.

"We announce our defection from the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan. We have chosen our Khalid Mehsud as the new leader for South Waziristan," said Azam Tariq, a spokesman for the breakaway group.

Khalid Mehsud was earlier known by the name Khan Said Sajna, and was a contender for the TTP's leadership after its former chief Hakimullah Mehsud was killed in a US drone strike last November. The post eventually was handed to Maulana Fazlullah, who hails from the Swat valley.

Since March, Khalid Mehsud's followers have been involved in bloody clashes with followers of the late Hakimullah Mehsud, who are now led by Sheheryar Mehsud.

Tariq, the spokesman, accused the TTP's leadership of criminality and of targeting civilians. "The TTP leadership has fallen into the hands of a bunch of conspirators. The umbrella organisation is involved in criminal activities like robbery and extortion," he said in a statement.

He told AFP that the TTP was carrying out bomb attacks in public places, actions he termed haram (impure).

"We tried our best to put the group in the right direction. Even the Afghan Taliban tried to mediate between us, but the TTP did not pay any attention to the Afghan Taliban," he said.