FILE - In this May 23, 2021, record photo, the Syria nationalist emblem is displayed astatine a gathering astatine Omayyid Square successful the Syrian superior Damascus, Syria. Two roadside bombs exploded adjacent a autobus carrying troops during the greeting unreserved hr successful the Syrian superior aboriginal Wednesday, Oct. 20, 2021, sidesplitting 13 radical and wounding 3 others, authorities TV reported. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar, File)

FILE - In this May 23, 2021, record photo, the Syria nationalist emblem is displayed astatine a gathering astatine Omayyid Square successful the Syrian superior Damascus, Syria. Two roadside bombs exploded adjacent a autobus carrying troops during the greeting unreserved hr successful the Syrian superior aboriginal Wednesday, Oct. 20, 2021, sidesplitting 13 radical and wounding 3 others, authorities TV reported. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar, File) (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)

WASHINGTON – The U.S. subject says it killed a elder al-Qaida person successful an airstrike Friday successful northwest Syria.

Army Maj. John Rigsbee, a spokesperson for U.S. Central Command, said successful a connection that Abdul Hamid al-Matar was killed by a drone strike.

Rigsbee said the sidesplitting of al-Matar volition disrupt al-Qaida's “ability to further crippled and transportation retired planetary attacks threatening U.S. citizens, our partners, and guiltless civilians." He said al-Qaida “uses Syria arsenic a basal for threats reaching into Syria, Iraq and beyond.”

The drone onslaught came 2 days aft a U.S. subject outpost successful confederate Syria was deed by a coordinated onslaught that included drones and rockets. U.S. officials said nary American troops stationed determination were injured oregon killed.

Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This worldly whitethorn not beryllium published, broadcast, rewritten oregon redistributed without permission.