US drone strike kills al-Qaida leader, officials say
WASHINGTON (AP) - The U.S. military says it killed a senior al-Qaida leader in an airstrike Friday in northwest Syria.
Army Maj. John Rigsbee, a spokesman for U.S. Central Command, said in a statement that Abdul Hamid al-Matar was killed by a drone strike.
Rigsbee said the killing of al-Matar will disrupt al-Qaida's "ability to further plot and carry out global attacks threatening U.S. citizens, our partners, and innocent civilians." He said al-Qaida "uses Syria as a base for threats reaching into Syria, Iraq and beyond."
This picture taken on Feb. 15, 2020 shows a view of an empty section of the highway connecting the northern Syrian city of Aleppo with the capital Damasacus, in an area formerly held by rebel fighters about 20 kilometres away from Aleppo, with an old
The drone strike came two days after a U.S. military outpost in southern Syria was hit by a coordinated attack that included drones and rockets. U.S. officials said no American troops stationed there were injured or killed.