State Department increases its bounty for the leader of al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula

Military Affairs

By Stavros Atlamazoglou

August 1, 2025

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Would you like to make $10 million? Well, if you do, the U.S. government is happily going to pay you if you can provide actionable intelligence regarding a certain Sa’ad bin Atef al-Awlaki, who happens to be the leader of al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP).

Al-Awlaki ascended to the leadership of AQAP only last year. Since then, he has publicly called for attacks against U.S. and Western targets across the world. In addition, as the AQAP’s leader and former Amir of the Shabwah province in Yemen, the terrorist has played a leadership role in attacks and kidnappings of Americans in Yemen.

Previously, al-Awlaki had a $6 million bounty on his head. Now, his elevated position and persistent threat he poses to U.S. citizens and interests caused his bounty to increase to $10 million.

The State Department offers additional bounty for information regarding more junior AQAP terrorists.

“In addition, RFJ continues to offer rewards up to $5 million for information leading to the identification or location of Ibrahim al-Banna and rewards up to $4 million for information leading to the identification or location of Ibrahim Ahmed Mahmoud al-Qosi,” the State Department added.

Both al-Banna and al-Qosi are key members of the AQAP’s leadership team.

Al-Qaeda might have suffered heavy defeats and losses in recent years – most notably by losing its leader, Osama bin Laden, at the hands of SEAL Team 6 in 2011 – but remains a threat to peace and stability in many parts of the world.

Although the ongoing conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza, as well as China’s increasing truculence in the Indo-Pacific, dominate the attention of the U.S. national security establishment, counter-terrorism operations continue to be important. To be sure, the global counter-terrorism focus that consumed U.S. military operations for over two decades following September 11, 2011, is no more. The U.S. military has shifted its attention to Great Power Competition and the possibility of conflict with a near-peer adversary, such as China and Russia. In the background, however, the Pentagon and the U.S. Intelligence Community continue to stalk in the shadows for those who look to inflict wanton violence against innocent civilians.

Rewards for Justice

The State Department’s Rewards for Justice program began as a way to bring accountability to terrorists. Enacted in the early 1980s as the “1984 Act to Combat International Terrorism,” the program was originally intended to counter the growing threat of international terrorism.

Since then, however, the State Department has expanded the program’s purview, providing money in exchange for information that relates to foreign interference in U.S. elections, malicious cyber activity, and North Korea.

Today, there are numerous individuals and groups about whom the U.S. government is offering money in exchange for information that can lead to their location.

At least eight individuals have been killed or captured based on information coming in as part of the Rewards for Justice program and the State Department has paid more than $250 million to over 125 individuals.

Feature Image: Sa’ad bin Atef al-Awlaki (Rewards for Justice Program/Department of State)