Mullah Omar hiding in Pakistan claimed US official

Taliban supremo Mullah Mohammad Omar and the strategic command of the militant group fighting an insurgency in Afghanistan are hiding in Pakistan, a senior US administration official said on Friday.
“We believe that the Taliban’s shura (consultation) council leaders led by Mullah Omar reside in Quetta in Pakistan,” the official told reporters, referring to the capital of rugged Balochistan province bordering Afghanistan.
“They run the shura council, they run the strategic command and control out of the city of Quetta,” said the official, speaking on condition of anonymity.
Pakistan has repeatedly denied the presence of bin Laden or Omar in its territory.
The US official, speaking at a formal media briefing, also said that the United States had seen clear links between the insurgency in Afghanistan and Pakistan through the Pashtun group.
“We also know that there are very clear Pashtun tribal links up through the Federally Administered Tribal Areas, the Fata, especially in north and south Waziristan, where Pashtuns who live in Pakistan are supporting Pashtuns, who are fighting in Afghanistan.
“In some cases, they are the one and same people — they live in Pakistan, they commute to the fight, they fight for a while in Afghanistan and retreat back into safe haven inside Waziristan,” the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.