US investigates claim civilian was killed by Syria air strike

Brother of dead man says he had no affiliation to Al Qaeda

The aftermath of a US air strike that killed Al Qaeda deputy leader Abu Khayr Al Masri in Syria in 2017. Photo: New Jersey Office of Homeland Security and Preparedness

The US is investigating whether an air attack on an Al Qaeda leader in Syria killed a civilian, the military's Central Command said.

“Centcom continues to assess the outcome of the strike and has been made aware of allegations that it may have resulted in a civilian casualty,” spokesman Maj John Moore said on Friday.

It is “investigating to determine whether or not the action may have unintentionally resulted in harm to civilians,” he said.

On May 3, Centcom announced that it had set out to kill a “senior Al Qaeda leader” in north-west Syria.

But hours later, the brother of Lotfi Hassan Masto – a man killed in a strike on the outskirts of the village of Qurqania – said he had no Al Qaeda ties.

He was “not in Al Qaeda and everything being said about him being in Al Qaeda or in the Nusra Front is all lies upon lies. Even the American propaganda is all false,” said Mohammed Masto, 72, referring to a group once affiliated with Al Qaeda.

Mr Masto said his brother was about 60 years old, had 12 children, owned a chicken farm and “was tending to his sheep in the mountain when the aircraft came and targeted him”.

“He was happy with his life and everyone loved him and appreciated him,” he said. “He minded his own business and lived at the edge of the village.”

About half a million people have been killed in the Syria conflict since it began in 2011 with violence against anti-government protests. This spiralled into a complex battlefield involving foreign armies, militias and religious extremists.

The US said it has about 1,000 troops in Syria as part of international efforts to combat militants, and periodically strikes extremists there.