A US drone attack in northwestern Syria has killed a Yemeni leader of a local jihadist group affiliated to Al-Qaeda, according to the US Central Command (CENTCOM) and to a group monitoring the Syrian war.

The attack, carried out on Monday shortly before midnight on the eastern outskirts of the city of Idlib, killed Abu Hamzah al Yemeni, identified as the leader of the group Hurras al-Deen by military officials.

Yemeni was travelling alone on a motorcycle at the time of the attack, CENTCOM said in a statement, adding that initial reports indicated there were no civilian victims in the strike.

The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which has a widespread network of sources inside Syria, confirmed that Yemeni was killed in the strike, stating that it was the second attempt on his life after a similar strike last year.