The US said on Monday it was offering $10 million each for information on the whereabouts of ISIS-K leader Sanaullah Ghafari and for tips leading to the arrest of those behind the deadly August 2021 bombing of Kabul airport.
Gentry Smith, from the US State Department’s Bureau of Diplomatic Security, said the cash payouts would encourage tip-offs that could lead to the arrest of ringleaders and militants of the ISIS affiliate in Afghanistan.
The message to terrorists was simple, added Mr Smith: “We will come after you and find you.”
Ghafari, also known as Shahab Al Muhajir, has since June 2020 headed ISIS-K, which has an estimated 3,000-5,000 fighters.
The group claimed responsibility for the bombing at Kabul airport last August, which killed 13 US soldiers and at least 170 Afghans.
ISIS-K remains a “resilient enemy” despite suffering heavy losses while fighting US and Nato forces in previous years, said US counter-terrorism official Chris Landberg.
The group is “concentrated in eastern Afghanistan and has demonstrated the capability to conduct lethal attacks throughout the country”, said Mr Landberg.
ISIS-K is an offshoot of the ISIS group that once carved out a caliphate across parts of Syria and Iraq.
The group's former leader, Muhammad Al Mawla, also known as Abu Ibrahim Al Hashimi Al Qurayshi, blew himself up along with family members during a raid by US special forces on a house in northern Syria last week.
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Community members gather in Berlin Heights, Ohio, for a vigil for Max Soviak, one of 13 US service members killed in the airport suicide bombing in Kabul. Reuters -
A portrait of US Marines Staff Sgt Taylor Hoover is displayed during a candlelight vigil in Salt Lake City, Utah. AP -
Sydney Robison, centre, looks on during a vigil for Hoover, who had been in the Marines for 11 years. AP -
People release balloons at a vigil for Soviak. Reuters -
Tammy Merryweather looks on during the vigil for Hoover. AP -
US service members gather at the vigil for Soviak in Berlin Heights, Ohio. Reuters -
The sister of Max Soviak, one of 13 US service members killed in the airport suicide bombing in Afghanistan's capital Kabul, speaks at a vigil in Berlin Heights, Ohio. Reuters -
The vigil for Soviak in Berlin Heights. Reuters -
People sing the national anthem at the vigil for Soviak. Reuters -
Community members carry flags at the vigil. Reuters -
Community members sing the national anthem at a vigil for Max Soviak. Reuters -
US Army veterans hold flags as they attend a vigil for Soviak at Edison Middle School in Berlin Heights, Ohio. AFP -
US Navy sailors give flowers to the sister of Max Soviak during a vigil at Edison Middle School in Berlin Heights, Ohio. AFP -
A memorial outside Edison Middle School. AFP -
US Navy sailors hand flowers to the sister of Max Soviak during a vigil in his honour at Edison Middle School in Berlin Heights, Ohio. AFP -
US Marines honour service members killed in Kabul, Afghanistan, at Hamid Karzai International Airport. Reuters -
Flag-draped coffins of US service members are loaded on to a transport aircraft during a ramp ceremony at Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul, Afghanistan. Reuters -
US Marines attend a ceremony at Hamid Karzai International Airport for service members killed in action. Reuters -
Messages written on a flag-draped coffin of one of the killed service members. Reuters -
Community members hold a sign honouring Max Soviak in Berlin Heights, Ohio. Reuters
