Islamic militants claim American carried out suicide attack in Syria

(CNN) -- A truck is loaded with munitions,
then driven up a hillside in northern Syria.
Moments later, there is a massive blast
followed by cries of "Allahu Akbar," or God is
great in Arabic, as well as the rattling of
gunfire.
Suicide bombings like this are not new in war-
torn Syria . But what could make this one
different is the man who radical Islamists say
played a part in pulling it off.
An American.
Abu Farouk al Shamy, a spokesman for the
rebel Suqour al-Sham battalion, told CNN the
Sunday attack was executed in coordination
with the al-Nusra Front, an al Qaeda-linked
organization that the U.S. government has
blacklisted as a foreign terror organization.
One video on YouTube, with the title "the
American martyrdom from al-Nusra Front,"
identifies the suicide bomber as Abu Hurayra
Al-Amriki. This video and several
other social media posts feature a
picture of a bearded man with that
name, smiling and holding a cat.
The man's full and true identity is
not known, and CNN cannot
independently verify an American
by any name recently died in Syria.
But a U.S. law enforcement official
concurs the man likely has an
American connection.
It's not known if he might be a
U.S. citizen or resident, though.
And the official pointed out any
identity can't be confirmed until
remains are recovered or examined, something
that would be difficult, given the size of the
explosion.
U.S. concern about Americans fighting in Syria
Syrian activists say the video is from Sunday
and shows militants' preparations and
ultimate attack on Syrian military checkpoints
in Jabal Al-Arba'een, near the city of Ariha in
Idlib province and believed to be along a key
rebel supply route.
According to Syrian activists and social media
postings, four vehicles laden with explosives
were part of the attack. One YouTube video
says the American detonated the biggest one,
which contained 17 tons of explosives,
including artillery shells. It is not clear what
exactly this man's involvement was, including
whether he was driving an armored truck, a
tanker or some other vehicle.
Even if he clearly did not act alone, it is the
man identified as Abu Hurayra who has gotten
a lot of attention on websites and social
media venues tied to radical Islamists.
This includes a tweet by a man with the
handle Abu Suleiman al-Muhajer, whose bio
identifies him as belonging to al Qaeda in the
Levant, the umbrella organization for the al-
Nusra Front. His tweet, which was published
on the radical Islamist website Hanein,
features the alleged American's picture and
the words, "Abu Hurayra Al-Amriki performed
a martyrdom operation in Idlib, Jabal Al-
Arba'een. May Allah accept him."
The name Abu Hurayra, which is popular
among Sunni Muslims, offers little clue as to
the man's identity. Abu Hurayra was a
companion of the Islamic prophet Mohammed
and the narrator of Hadith.
Regardless, if his U.S. nationality
could somehow be confirmed, it
wouldn't be a total surprise.
U.S. intelligence and law
enforcement officials have
expressed concerns about
Americans joining the fight in Syria,
including with groups like the jihadist al-
Nusra Front. The worry is that they and other
Westerners might pose a threat when they
return a home.
"There's going to be a diaspora out
of Syria," FBI Director James
Comey said last week. "And we are
determined not to let lines be
drawn from Syria today to a future
9/11."