Pakistan campaigner Khalid Khawaja found dead

Mr Khawaja campaigned on behalf of missing people

The body of a Pakistani campaigner has been found in the North Waziristan tribal area, weeks after he was reportedly kidnapped by militants.

Officials said Khalid Khawaja's body was found in a ditch near the town of Mir Ali on Friday afternoon. He had been shot in the head and chest.

A note attached to the body claimed that Mr Khawaja - a former Pakistani intelligence officer - was a US agent.

It said that if "someone tries to spy for America this will be his fate".

Mr Khawaja, along with two other men, had been missing for several weeks after travelling into North Waziristan.

A group calling itself the Asian Tigers later said it had kidnapped all three.

The BBC's Syed Shoaib Hasan in Islamabad says that the group is thought to be a front for the Pakistani Taliban, who in effect control most of the Waziristan tribal region.

A video was released of Mr Khawaja before his death in which he was seen confessing that he was a CIA and Pakistani agent.

His captors had been demanding a ransom and the release of Taliban militants in exchange for the release of the men.

In recent years Mr Khawaja had campaigned for the release of dozens of people who have allegedly been taken into unofficial custody in Pakistan.