Close on the heels of the militant Islamic State outfit taking credit for the abortive Texas attack on a Prophet Mohammad cartoon contest, the US Government has come out with a $20 million rewards offer for information on the whereabouts of four top ISIS leaders.
Although the White House took the stand that it was still to be established if the attack was really the handiwork of ISIS, the State Department announced the rewards plan for tips on the four men — Abdul Rahman Mustafa al-Qaduli ($7 million), Abu Mohammed al-Adnani ($5 million), Tarkhan Tayumurazovich Batirashvili ($5 million) and Tariq bin al-Tahar bin al-Falih al-Awni al-Harzi ($3 million).
Making the announcement under its “Rewards for Justice” programme, the State Department said ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi had in April 2013 publicly declared that Iraq was operating under the moniker of his organization. ISIS has since asserted publicly that it is the true inheritor of Osama bin ladin’s legacy.