Eleven al-Qaida operatives have been killed in US airstrikes in Syria, including a top leader, the Pentagon has announced.<br /><br /> Abu Hani al-Masri was killed in the February 4 strike near Idlib in the north of the country.<br /><br /> The Pentagon said al-Masri oversaw the creation and operation of many of the militant group’s training camps in Afghanistan in the 80s and 90s.<br /><br /> He also had close ties to Osama bin Laden and current leader, Ayman al-Zawahri. The Pentagon said, “These strikes disrupt al-Qaida’s ability to plot and direct external attacks targeting the U.S. and our interests worldwide.”<br /><br /> The US counter-terror strikes are separate from the broader US-led coalition targeting the so-called Islamic State in Syria.<br />
