Iran’s Army Commander-in-Chief Major General Amir Hatami has announced a state-backed financial reward programme offering 5 billions Tomans (approximately $30,000) for killing or capture of US soldiers.
Speaking at a ceremony honouring National Journalists’ Day, General Hatami revealed that any individual who kills or captures an aggressor US soldier and hands them over to authorities will receive the bounty, reports Mehr News Agency.
The initiative is supported by a new scheme backed by public crowdfunding campaigns, enabling Iranian citizens to donate money to fund the armed forces’ defence operations.
Under the terms of the reward, courageous Iranian women who accomplish this feat will be eligible to receive double the standard payout.
Additionally, the Army will purchase any weapon used in the operation at twice its market value, with the intention of displaying it permanently in a dedicated museum.
The bounty announcement comes alongside declarations by General Hatami that the era of American military presence in the Persian Gulf is [at an end].
He said Iran’s defensive and offensive capabilities are being rapidly rebuilt and expanded, pointing to recent clashes with American forces over the Strait of Hormuz as a demonstration of these new capacities.
Warning that enemies have fundamentally miscalculated the country’s military strength, the commander-in-chief highlighted a security reorganisation ordered by Islamic Revolution Leader Ayatollah Seyyed Mojtaba Khamenei, to show that regional escalation will only make the nation more resolute.
