Shakirullah Shakir was riding on a motorcycle near Miran Shah, the main town in the North Waziristan tribal area, when he was shot, the officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to the media.

Shakir was a senior commander and spokesman for the Fidayeen-e-Islam wing of the Pakistani Taleban. He once claimed to a local newspaper that his group had trained more than 1,000 suicide bombers at camps in North Waziristan. No group has claimed responsibility for his killing.

Both North Waziristan and South Waziristan are key sanctuaries for the Pakistani Taleban, which has declared war on the US-allied Pakistani government.

Missiles believed to have been fired by a US drone hit a pickup truck in the Nishter area of South Waziristan on Monday, killing eight suspected militants, Pakistani intelligence officials said.

Also Monday, a senior Pakistani Taleban commander said he is splitting from the group to protest attacks against civilians, a rare criticism of the militants by one of their own.

Fazal Saeed said he is forming his own militant group, Tehrik-e-Taleban Islami, and will focus on fighting NATO troops in Afghanistan.

The Pakistani Taleban, or Tehrik-e-Taleban Pakistan, is mainly focused on battling the Pakistani government. Saeed, leader of the Pakistani Taleban in the Kurram tribal area near the Afghan border, accused the group of targeting civilians in suicide attacks and bomb blasts in mosques.

“We have repeatedly protested over killing unarmed and innocent people in these attacks, but no heed was paid, so we are splitting from Tehrik-e-Taleban” Pakistan, Saeed told The Associated Press by phone from an undisclosed location.

It’s unclear whether Saeed’s decision to split from the group is related to plans by the Pakistani army to launch a military offensive soon in Kurram. The army has cut deals in the past to avoid targeting groups who fight in Afghanistan.

Saeed is believed to be a close ally of the Haqqani network, which the US military believes is the most dangerous militant group battling foreign forces in Afghanistan.

Local tribesmen said late last year that the Haqqani network cut a deal with Shiite militias in Kurram to allow the militants to cross through the area on their way to fighting in Afghanistan.

The route would help them avoid deadly US drone attacks that have rained down on North Waziristan, their main stronghold.