US Predator Drone attack missed Baitullah Mehsud by hours

The bell tolls for thee Mehsud. New York Times

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — A United States drone strike on a funeral in Pakistan’s tribal areas missed the leader of the Pakistani Taliban, Baitullah Mehsud, by hours on Tuesday, a Pakistani security official said Wednesday.[...]

Mr. Mehsud was not present at the time of the attack, but had gone to pay his respects to a Taliban commander killed in another American drone strike earlier the same day, the official said.

Though the strike on the funeral appeared to have included only two midlevel Taliban leaders among the scores killed, it presented a clear blow to Mr. Mehsud’s operation, showing the deadly proximity of the drone attacks to his areas and even the possibility that he was a target.