US Offers $5 Million for al-Masri Tips

01/07/2006| IslamWeb

The US is offering a reward of up to 5 million dollars to anyone providing information leading to Abu Ayyub al-Masri, the alleged senior al-Qaeda leader in Iraq.

Condoleezza Rice, the US secretary of state, on Friday authorized the reward under the Reward for Justice program, which has paid more than 62 million dollars to more than 40 people who have provided information to the US.

Al-Masri, also known as Abu Hamza al-Muhajir and born in Egypt, is believed to be the successor to Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the leader who was killed in a US bombing raid near Baquba earlier in June. The US bounty for al-Zarqawi was 25 million dollar.

Al-Masri is said to have trained in Afghanistan and formed al-Qaeda's first cell in Baghdad, according to the US military.

US officials claim he is an explosives expert trained in the construction of improvised bombs.

Adam Ereli, a spokesman for the state department, said: "We encourage anyone with information on al-Masri's location to contact the US embassy in Baghdad, any US military commander in Iraq, any US embassy or consulate, or the rewards for justice staff."

Earlier payments have included 30 million dollars to people who gave tips that led to the 2003 killing of Uday and Qusay, the sons of Saddam Hussein, the former Iraqi president.

Photo Caption

Abu Ayyub al-Masri, the alleged senior al-Qaeda leader in Iraq.