WANA, Oct 19: A pro-government tribal chief who had been kidnapped by masked men from Wana in South Waziristan Agency on Tuesday was found dead on Wednesday. Officials said that the body of the chief of the Dotani tribe, Malik Mashad Khan, 55, was found near the Wana bypass on Wednesday morning.

Witnesses said that the killers had chopped his head off and threw his body into a dry water course. His pick-up was found abandoned.

Officials said that Mashad Khan had supported government’s action against suspected militants in the volatile tribal region, and, therefore, the involvement of militants in his murder could not be ruled out.

More than 50 pro-government tribal elders and officials have been killed since security forces launched an operation against suspected militants in the South Waziristan Agency.