US launches airstrikes against Al-Qaeda-linked Khorasan group

Islamic Extremism

The U.S has launched another round of airstrikes, but not against ISIL. The U.S military says the air strikes were carried out against the al-Qaida-linked Khorasan group in northwestern Syria. CCTV America’s Jim Spellman reported this story.

This is a group the Pentagon says is made up of elite members of al-Qaida who gathered in Syria to take advantage of the chaos there and, according to U.S. officials, have been working on a plot to strike U.S. or Western targets using advanced bomb-making techniques.

In September, when the U.S. began airstrikes against ISIL in Syria, the Pentagon also listed the Khorasan group as a target, but little has been said about this group.

Last night’s strikes used bombers, fighters and drones to go after vehicles, bomb-making facilities and training facilities. The Pentagon said that the strikes hit their marks but that they are still assessing the impact.

CCTV America interviewed Mark Levine, a fellow with the Truman National Security Project, to talk about the latest U.S air strikes.