Senior al-Qaeda leader killed in US drone strike in Syria: Pentagon

A senior al-Qaeda leader was killed in a US airstrike in northwast Syria, the Pentagon said on Friday.

The US military killed senior al-Qaeda leader Abdul Hamid al-Matar in a drone strike in Syria on Friday, a US Central Command spokesman said.

"The removal of this al-Qaeda senior leader will disrupt the terrorist organization's ability to further plot and carry out global attacks threatening US citizens, our partners, and innocent civilians," US Army Major John Rigsbee said in a written statement.