A top al-Qaeda commander and possible replacement for Osama bin Laden has been killed in a US missile strike in Pakistan close to the Afghan border, reports suggest.

Ilyas Kashmiri's apparent death is another blow to al-Qaeda just over a month after bin Laden was killed by American commandos in a northwest Pakistani army town.

Described by US officials as al-Qaeda's military operations chief in Pakistan, the 47-year-old Pakistani was one of five most-wanted militant leaders in the country.

He was accused of a string of bloody attacks in South Asia, including the 2008 Mumbai massacre, as well as aiding plots in the West.

Washington had offered a $US5 million ($A4.69 million) bounty for information leading to his location.

His death was not confirmed publicly by the United States or Pakistani officials.

Verifying who has been killed in the drone strikes is difficult.



http://au.news.yahoo.com/thewest/a/-/world/9579062/al-qaeda-militant-killed-in-pakistan/