The US State Department announced Tuesday it has raised the reward for information leading to the whereabouts of Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) leader Sa’ad bin Atef al-Awlaki.
Under the Rewards for Justice program, the offer has increased from $6 million to $10 million, according to JNS.
Al-Awlaki, who became head of AQAP in 2024, has “publicly called for attacks against the United States and our allies,” the State Department said.
Before his current role, he served as Al-Qaeda’s chief in Yemen, where he was responsible for kidnapping American citizens and orchestrating attacks on US interests.
The program is also maintaining offers for intelligence on two of al-Awlaki’s associates: up to $5 million for Ibrahim al-Banna and up to $4 million for Ibrahim Ahmed Mahmoud al-Qosi.
Al-Awlaki last month issued direct threats against US President Donald Trump and billionaire Elon Musk in a video address.
The half-hour video message, disseminated online by AQAP supporters, also included calls for "lone-wolf terrorists" to assassinate leaders in Egypt, Jordan, and the Gulf Arab states in response to the ongoing Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip.
AQAP has carried out many terrorist attacks in Yemen in recent years and has also targeted the West.
In 2015, the group claimed responsibility for the Charlie Hebdo killings in Paris and then called for “lone wolf attacks” against Western targets.
In 2020, AQAP claimed an attack at a US naval base in Pensacola, Florida, though it provided no evidence.
AQAP, long considered the most dangerous branch of Al-Qaeda, has reportedly been weakened by infighting and suspected US drone strikes. However, the group is now seemingly attempting to leverage the Israel-Hamas conflict, mirroring efforts by Yemen’s Houthi rebels.