Pentagon Confirms Death of Fatah Al-Sham Commander Al-Tunisi in Syria Airstrike

The US Department of Defense confirms the death of al-Qaeda external operations leader Mohammad Habib Boussadoun al-Tunisi in a January 17 counterterrorism strike near Idlib in Syria, department spokesperson Peter Cook said in a release on Thursday.

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — Al-Tunisi was a member of al-Qaeda's local affiliate Jabhat Fatah Al-Sham, formerly known as the Nusra Front. The terror group has been fighting in Syria against government forces since the outbreak of a civil war in the country in 2011.

"Boussadoun's death will degrade al-Qaida's pool of experienced, well-connected facilitators and fighters with external operations experience," Cook stated.

The spokesperson noted that al-Tunisi was connected with external plots to attack Western targets.

Jabhat Fatah Al-Sham is designated as a terrorist organization and is banned in Russia and numerous other countries around the world.

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