KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – Taliban claims that the U.S. State Department has removed Sirajuddin Haqqani, its acting interior minister, from the Rewards for Justice list, which had previously offered a $10 million bounty for information leading to his arrest.
The Taliban-run Bakhtar News Agency also reported that $5 million bounties on Abdul Aziz Haqqani and Yahya Haqqani, two other members of the Haqqani Network, have been lifted.
However, as of now, Sirajuddin Haqqani remains listed as a wanted individual on the FBI’s website.
U.S. officials have not commented on the claim, and no official confirmation has been made regarding the alleged removals.
Currently, the Rewards for Justice website only lists Khalil al-Rahman Haqqani, the Taliban’s former minister for refugees and repatriation, who was killed in a suicide attack in Kabul last year. The program had previously offered a $5 million reward for information on him.
The Haqqani Network remains designated on the Rewards for Justice website as a terrorist organization active in Afghanistan and Pakistan. According to the program, the group, founded in the 1980s, has carried out kidnappings and attacks against U.S. and coalition forces, as well as Afghan government and civilian targets.
The Taliban’s claims come shortly after the release of George Glezmann, a U.S. citizen who was abducted while traveling as a tourist in Afghanistan in December 2022. His release on Thursday marked the third time since January that the Taliban has freed a U.S. national from captivity.
The release followed a visit to Kabul by a U.S. delegation, which included former U.S. special envoy for Afghanistan Zalmay Khalilzad.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio welcomed Glezmann’s release, calling it a “positive and constructive step” and credited Qatar for its role in securing his freedom.
