Overview
- The State Department’s Rewards for Justice tip program announced the offer Tuesday, naming al-Hamidawi, the militia’s secretary general, as the target.
- U.S. officials say he directed Kataib Hezbollah attacks on American diplomatic facilities as recently as last month.
- The State Department says the group receives training, weapons, and other support from Iran’s Revolutionary Guard and from Lebanese Hezbollah.
- Recent cases tied to the militia include the weeklong abduction of U.S. journalist Shelly Kittleson in Baghdad, who was freed with Iraqi help, and the earlier detention of researcher Elizabeth Tsurkov until September.
- Washington lists Kataib Hezbollah as a Foreign Terrorist Organization since 2009 and labels al-Hamidawi a global terrorist since February 2020, noting the group has used IEDs, rockets, and drones to push for a U.S. troop exit.