Iran’s military announced on August 16, 2026, a bounty of US$30,000 for anyone who kills or captures US soldiers, with the reward doubled for women who carry out such actions, according to Army Chief Amir Hatami [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9]. The reward is also expressed as 5 billion tomans, an informal Iranian currency unit equivalent to 10,000 rials [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9]. Hatami said the plan followed numerous requests to participate in such financial support and emphasized, “Anyone who kills or captures and hands over an invading American military personnel will receive a reward equivalent to US$30,000 or five billion tomans from the Islamic Republic of Iran’s Army. Courageous Iranian women who carry out such an action will receive double the reward” [1].
Hatami did not specify when or where the killing or capturing of US troops was expected to take place[s1-s9]. He also repeated Iran’s demand for the US to leave the Middle East, stating, “They no longer have permission to enter the Persian Gulf, the Gulf of Oman or the Strait of Hormuz” [2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9].
The Iran-US war began on February 28, 2026, after a US and Israeli attack on Iran. Fighting paused in April after nearly 40 days with a ceasefire, followed by a peace framework in June that later collapsed [1, 2]. US ground forces have not officially deployed in Iran except for a rescue mission in April 2026 where around 200 US troops and more than 170 aircraft retrieved a downed American F-15 pilot; several US aircraft were lost during the operation [1, 2]. Since then, sporadic exchanges of fire have occurred mostly near southern Iran and the Strait of Hormuz [1, 2, 3].
The bounty announcement marks the latest escalation in the ongoing conflict between Iran and the US. No new peace talks or ceasefire terms were announced alongside the bounty. The situation remains volatile with no clear timeline for further developments[s1-s9].
