ISLAMABAD — Pakistani police and the family of prominent cleric Maulana Samiul Haq, who also was known as the "father of the Taliban," say he has been killed in a knife attack at his home in the garrison city of Rawalpindi.

Haq's son, Hamidul Haq, says his father was killed Friday.

Yousaf Shah, Haq's spokesman, said the attacker's identity and their motive were not immediately known. Haq was the head of his faction of the Jamiat-e-Ulema Islam party.

The religious scholar was the founder of the famous Haqqania seminary, where dozens of Afghan leaders have received their education.

His seminary is located in the town of Akora Khattak in the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province, which borders Afghanistan.

Police say they have transported Haq's body to a hospital and officers are still investigating.