The United States State Department on Friday offered a $10 million reward for information about Iran’s new supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei and several other senior Iranian officials.
The move comes amid rising tensions following joint US-Israeli strikes on Iranian military sites and retaliatory missile and drone attacks across the region on February 28.
The announcement was made through the State Department’s “Rewards for Justice” program, which offers cash rewards for intelligence that helps locate or prosecute individuals involved in terrorism against the United States.
Iran’s interior minister and minister of intelligence and security were also included on the list published by the program.
In a post on social media, Rewards for Justice wrote, “Got information on these Iranian terrorist leaders? Send us a tip. It could make you eligible for a reward and relocation.”
US President Donald Trump on Friday claimed that Iran is “about to surrender” during the Middle East crisis. According to Axios, citing three officials from G7 countries, Trump made the remark during a virtual meeting with G7 leaders on Wednesday.
The report said Trump told allies during the Group of Seven call that he had “got rid of a cancer that was threatening us all,” while discussing the outcome of Operation “Epic Fury.”
Trump also lashed out at Iran’s leadership, calling them “deranged scumbags” and saying it was his “great honor” to kill them, as the conflict in the Middle East entered its second week with intense exchanges of drone and missile strikes across the region.
Referring to the American military’s large-scale operation against Iran, he said Washington is carrying out strikes to “destroy the terrorist regime of Iran” militarily.
