Former Taliban defence minister and number two leader of the militia Mullah Obaidullah Akhund has been arrested by Pakistani forces from Quetta in the southwest Balochistan province.

Akhund was reportedly captured along with Amir Khan Haqqani, a Taliban commander and Abdul Bari, the former Governor of Helmand province, local daily Dawn reported on Friday.

He was on America's most wanted list and was a member of the 10-man Taliban Leadership Council announced in June 2003.

NATO and US officials view Akhund as one of the closest lieutenants of outfit's chief Mullah Omar, the other two being Mullah Akhtar Osmani and Mullah Akhtar Mohammad Mansoor.

Akhund is the senior-most Taliban figure to have been captured since the ouster of the militia from power in Afghanistan in November 2001. He hails from Punjwai district of Kandahar province and was widely considered as the military chief of Taliban forces.

Former Taliban spokesman Abdul Latif Hakimi, who was captured by Pakistani security forces in Quetta in 2005, had said last year that that Mullah Omar had told him to initiate an attack that would send a clear signal to the world that the Taliban were a force to be reckoned with.

Akhund was close to Mullah Omar was also evident from the fact that 14 commanders appointed by the Taliban leadership for two war zones in southern and eastern Afghanistan had been asked to report directly to the 10-member leadership council, which was later expanded to 18 members.       

Hakimi had said that the council was supervised by Mullah Obaidullah and Mullah Beradar, who were to report matters directly to Mullah.