Al Qaeda has confirmed that top leader Abu Khayr al-Masri, believed to be the organisation's number two, was killed in a drone strike by the US-led coalition in Syria. The killing of Masri, described by analysts as "jihadi royalty," could serve as a major security coup for US President Donald Trump early in his presidency. Two branches of the global jihadist group, including the powerful al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), announced Masri's death in a statement dated Wednesday.
Calling him a "hero," the statement said Masri "was killed during a Crusader drone strike" in Syria. "All of al-Sham (Syria) will bear witness to the latest crime of America and the Crusader alliance," the statement said, in reference to the US-led coalition bombing jihadists in Syria and Iraq. It also expressed its condolences to al Qaeda chief Ayman al-Zawahiri.
A US official said this week that Washington was investigating reports that Egyptian-born Masri had been killed in a US strike in or around the city of Idlib in north-west Syria.Masri was a son-in-law of Qaeda founder Osama bin Laden and believed to be Zawahiri's deputy.
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