Al-Qaeda ally of bin Laden killed in US airstrike in Syria

The Pentagon says American fighter jets killed 11 al-Qaeda members including an associate of Osama bin Laden, the former leader of al-Qaeda, near the city of Idlib in Syria during strikes this month.

Colonel Jeff Davis, Pentagon spokesman, said that 10 al-Qaeda members were killed in a strike on February 3.

A second strike on February 4 resulted in the death of Abu Hani al-Masri, who had close ties with the former leader of al-Qaeda.

Al-Masri is said to have established and run al-Qaeda training camps in Afghanistan during the 1980s and 1990s.

He also had close ties with Ayman al-Zawahiri, who succeeded bin Laden after his death at the hands of American forces in 2011.

Colonel Davis said: “These strikes disrupt al-Qaeda’s ability to design and direct external operations against the United States and its interests around the world.”

Al-Qaeda’s influence in Syria is largely achieved through the Jabhat Fatah al-Sham group, which was previously known as the al-Nusra Front.

The al-Nusra Front announced in mid-2016 that it no longer had any affiliation with any foreign group, which gave rise to speculation that it had severed its ties with al-Qaeda.

However, it is believed that the leadership structure of Jabhat Fatah al-Sham maintains close ties with al-Qaeda.

Last week, a US military operation against al-Qaeda in Yemen resulted in the death of an American commando and, according to reports, the deaths of up to 16 civilians including children.

However, Mr. Trump’s administration called that operation successful, saying it resulted in the collection of valuable intelligence.

Source: BBC