WASHINGTON, Jan 4: The Pentagon welcomed reports on Thursday that a prominent Pakistani warlord was killed in a drone strike, saying his death would represent a “major development”.

Referring to the death of militant `commander’ Maulvi Nazir in a drone strike, Pentagon spokesman George Little told reporters: “If the reports are true, then this would be a significant blow, and would be very helpful not just to the United States but also to our Pakistani partners.”

Maulvi Nazir was known to send militants to Afghanistan to attack Nato-led troops.

“This is someone who has a great deal of blood on his hands,” Mr Little said. “This would be a major development.”

A US official said the death of Maulvi Nazir could limit Al Qaeda’s ability to operate out of South Waziristan.

“Commander Nazir and his men were directly involved in planning and executing cross-border attacks against US and coalition forces in Afghanistan and in providing protection for Al Qaeda fighters in South Waziristan,” said the US official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

“While it is too soon to tell, the death of Nazir along with some of his deputies could push his network into disarray, degrading Al Qaeda’s access to South Waziristan as a result,” the official said in an email.—AFP