Al-Qaida leader killed in US airstrike in Syria: Pentagon

Mohsen Adballah Ibrahim al Charekh, the highest ranking leader of the network of veteran al-Qaida operatives called the Khorasan Group, has been killed in a recent airstrike, the Pentagon announced Sunday. The Oct. 15 airstrike killed Charekh, also known as Sanafi al-Nasr, in northwest Syria, the Pentagon said in a statement. "This operation deals a significant blow to the Khorasan Group's plans to attack the United States and our allies, and once again proves that those who seek to do us harm are not beyond our reach," the Pentagon said. The statement called Al-Nasr "a long-time jihadist experienced in funneling money and fighters for al-Qaida." Al-Nasr moved funds from donors in the Gulf region into Iraq and then to al-Qaida leaders from Pakistan to Syria; he organized and maintained routes for new recruits to travel from Pakistan to Syria through Turkey; and he assisted al-Qaida's external operations in the West, the statement said. Al-Nasr previously worked for al-Qaida's Iran-based facilitation network, and in 2012, he took charge of al-Qaida's core finances before relocating to Syria in 2013, the statement said. He is the fifth senior Khorasan Group leader killed in the last four months.