Iran’s military announced a bounty equivalent to $30,000 for killing or capturing US soldiers, with the reward doubled if carried out by a woman, amid continued tensions between Iran and the US in West Asia.
The move comes as the two countries occasionally trade strikes on each other’s interests in the region, with the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz being a major hurdle in any peace deal since the war began on 28 February.
Iran’s army chief, Amir Hatami, said the plan had been drawn up following “the large number of requests” to participate in financial support.
Hatami did not provide any details on where or when the killing or capturing of US soldiers was expected to take place, and there has been no known deployment of US ground forces in Iran during the West Asia war.
“Anyone who kills or captures and hands over an invading American military personnel will receive a reward equivalent to $30,000 or 5 billion tomans from the Islamic Republic of Iran’s Army,” Hatami was quoted as saying.
The war between the United States and the Islamic Republic of Iran began on 28 February after the Donald Trump administration, joined by Israel’s Benjamin Netanyahu government, attacked Tehran and various other places in the country.
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Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed on the first day of the war, with Tehran retaliating with strikes on Israel and various US bases in neighbouring Arab countries, and also putting an effective blockade on commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.
This sent oil and gas prices soaring and the global economy into a tailspin, with the initial attacks followed by an April ceasefire, brokered by Pakistan, after nearly 40 days of fighting.
A June framework for peace talks later collapsed, and Iran and the United States have since traded fire sporadically, with fighting mainly centred in southern Iran and around the Strait of Hormuz.
Yemen’s Houthi rebels have also joined strikes on commercial ships, disrupting navigation on the Red Sea route as well, further complicating matters, and Iran’s army has announced that the bounty will be doubled if the capture is carried out by a woman.
“Courageous Iranian women who carry out such an action will receive double the reward,” Hatami added.