Pakistan intelligence officials yesterday confirmed a key al-Qaeda expert on chemical and biological weapons was killed in an attack by a CIA-operated unpiloted drone, late on Sunday.

Egyptian-born Midhat Mursi al-Sayid Umar, who was also known as Abu Khabab al-Masri, was one of six Arab men who were killed in a remote region along the Afghan border, according to an intelligence official. The US had offered a $5m (€3.19m, £2.5m) reward for his capture. Western diplomats said it would be a boost to morale in the Bush administration, struggling with mounting troop casualties in Afghanistan and a revival of militant attacks in Iraq.