Al Nusra leader gravely injured by airstrike

The leader of Al Nusra has been critically injured in an airstrike carried out by the Russian Air Force, the Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement.

The ministry added at least 12 Al Nusra field commanders had been killed in the same attack, Russia Today reported on Wednesday.

Abu Mohammad al Julani, the Commander-in-chief of Tahrir al-Sham, a terrorist group formed after the collapse of the Al Nusra terrorist organization, was targeted by the Russian airstrike, the ministry's spokesman Major-General Igor Konashenkov said.

Julani “sustained shrapnel wounds and is in a critical condition after losing his arm, according to information from multiple independent sources,” Konashenkov added.

The airstrike killed at least 12 Al Nusra field commanders and some 50 members of the group’s security detail, the ministry’s spokesman said, adding that Julani’s aide was also killed in the Russian strike.

On October 3, Russian intelligence “uncovered the time and place of the Al Nusra leadership meeting” led by Juliani, the statement said. After getting confirmation of the terrorists’ arrival and the start of the meeting, Su-34 fighter-bombers and Su-35 fighters were deployed to strike the location.

More than a dozen militants were also injured in the airstrike, the ministry added.

Source: MENA