ISLAMABAD: Taliban confirmed that their chief Hakeemullah Mehsud had been killed in a US drone attack on Friday.

`We confirm with great sorrow that our esteemed leader was martyred in a drone attack,` a senior Taliban commander said. His funeral would be held on Saturday in Miramshah, the commander said an event likely to stir tensions further in the already volatile region.

Several intelligence, army and Taliban sources confirmed Hakeemullah had been killed in the drone strike. Four security officials confirmed his death to Reuters. The killing is the latest in a series of setbacks for the Pakistani Taliban who have carried out attacks on armed forces and civilians in theirfight to topple the government.

The death will likely scupper the immediate prospect of peace talks between the Taliban and the government of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, who won a landslide election victory in May by promising to bring peace to Pakistan.

Although his death would bring calls for revenge, it might make negotiations with militants easier in the long-run, said Saifullah Mehsud, director of the Pakistani think-tank Fata Research Centre. `Hakeemullah was a very controversial figure and he had very tough demands.` But the strike did not signal the end of the Pakistani Taliban, he said. `It`s a very decentralised organisation. They`ve lost leaders to drone strikes before.`-Reuters