US State Department offers $10 million reward for leader of Iraqi armed group

WASHINGTON: The US State Department is offering up to $10 million for information on the leader of the Tehran-backed Iraqi armed group Kataeb Sayyid Al-Shuhada (KSS), which Washington designates as a terrorist organization.
US officials said in a social media post Thursday they were seeking information on KSS leader Hashim Finyan Rahim Al-Saraji, also known as Abu Alaa Al-Walai.
The group has “killed Iraqi civilians and attacked US diplomatic facilities in Iraq, as well as attacking US military bases and personnel in Iraq and Syria,” Washington said.
The post notes “you could be eligible for relocation and a reward” for information on Al-Saraji’s whereabouts.
Al-Saraji has a seat within the Coordination Framework, the ruling Shiite alliance that holds the parliamentary majority.
Iran-backed groups have targeted the US embassy in Iraq’s capital, its diplomatic and logistics facility at Baghdad’s airport, and oil fields operated by foreign companies.
Iraq, which had recently regained some stability after decades of conflict, was immediately dragged into the Middle East war triggered when the United States and Israel attacked Iran February 28.
Earlier this month, a similar reward was offered for the leader of Kataeb Hezbollah, a powerful Iraqi armed group who kidnapped US journalist Shelly Kittleson last month and held her for a week before setting her free.
Washington has piled pressure on Baghdad to fight the pro-Tehran groups by suspending cash shipments and freezing funding for security programs in Iraq, according to US media reports this week.