as afghanistan s taliban gain ground so pakistan s taliban, the ttp, take heart. in his first ever tv interview their leader answers questions cnn sent him via intermediaries at an undisclosed location near the afghan-pakistan border. translator: the afghan taliban victy is the victory of the entire muslim people. reporter: masood s three predecessors were all killed by u.s. drone strikes for fighting alongside afghan taliban targeting u.s. sources. and the massacre of 145 people mostly children in a pakistan school in 2014.
victory of entire muslim people. our nations are based on brother hood, sympathy and islamic principles. reporter: masood s three predecessors were all killed in drone strikes. their bloody record includes the 2009 attack that killed nine people including seven cia officers and contractors at a base close to the pakistan border. and the massacre of 145 people mostly children in a pakistan school in 2014. masood became leader in 2018 when the u.n. later designated him a global terrorist and added him to the sanction list for his ties to al-qaeda. today he denies those al-qaeda links and that his group is still fighting alongside the afghan taliban. translator: our fight is only in pakistan, and we are at war with the pakistani security