A chilling ‘kill or capture’ appeal has been launched by Iran’s proxy forces as they try to hunt down westerners in the region so they can exact revenge for strikes on Iran by US and Israel
Western ex-pat workers, military and diplomatic officials, foreigners working in Iraq, and any locals helping them, are under threat from Tehran’s loyalist terror gangs as the Iran war escalates.
One of Iran’s proxy groups in neighbouring Iraq has offered a 150 million Iraqi dinar – or £100,000 – reward for any information leading them to capturing and then killing a foreigner – and the threat is spreading across the Middle East.
The chilling offer warns it is trying to “tighten the noose on Americans on the ground” and threatens it will perform “field neutralisation” on victims, murdering them -but experts believe it will include all westerners and will spread outside Iraq. At least one worker fired by a western oil company in southern Iraq is known to have passed on coordinates of locations and other details relating to westerners to Iraqi pro-Iranian militia trying to gain leverage in the war.
But it is also believed the terror threat will now spread to include all foreigners not just in Iraq but across militant hotspots in the wider Middle East. The “foreigners wanted” appeal was made on the internet and has sparked fears of the dark days of Iraq returning, with kidnappings and killings a daily occurrence.
That insurgency sparked the movement Al-Qaeda in Iraq, which gave birth to Islamic State, an extremist Sunni network on the opposite side to the Shia militia. But this time it is the Islamic Resistance of Iraq, a Shia group, that is threatening to bring slaughter and kidnappings back in response to the US – Israel war on Iran.
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It asks for ‘preemptive information” leading to an arrest or “field neutralisation” -or murder of a foreigner who has been caught by the group. An intelligence assessment seen by the Daily Mirror warns: “Messaging attributed to the organisation identifying itself as the Islamic Resistance in Iraq indicates an elevated and credible kidnap and detention threat directed primarily at US- linked individuals but with wider implications for all western personnel operating in Iraq and the wider Middle Eastern region.
“The communication announces a monetary reward intended to incentivise the identification and reporting of individuals believed to be associated with the US military or intelligence structures operating within the country. The reward of 150,000,000 million in Iraqi dinar is offered for information that leads to operations against such individuals including their capture or neutralisation.
“Although the statement explicitly references Americans, historical patterns of militant targeting in Iraq indicate that such messaging frequently expands in practice to include Western nationals more broadly. The financial incentive significantly increases the likelihood of human source intelligence collection targeting foreign personnel and their local networks.”
It comes as Iran’s foreign minister Abbas Araghchi warns Iran is prepared for a “long war” and has never sought a ceasefire – whilst missiles sparked blazes again close to Dubai airport. US and Israeli forces have continued to bombard Iran, hitting cities including Tehran, Hamadan and Isfahan, as Iranian counter-attacks continue, with damage reported in several Israeli towns. In another remarkable development Israel has also indicated it has no appetite for ceasing the war – as it still has “thousands of targets” within Iran that it wants to hit.
Israeli military spokesman Brigadier General Effie Defrin said: “We still have thousands of targets in Iran, and we are identifying new targets every day.” Tehran has responded to the war by threatening shipping in the vital Strait of Hormuz – which usually sees passage of 20 per cent of global oil and gas exports.
Lebanon has also come under attack from Israel. Latest death toll figures are creeping up with 1,444 dead in Iran, at least 15 in Israel, 13 US soldiers and 19 killed in Gulf states. And it comes as Iran confirms both Russia and China are helping Tehran. Tehran’s foreign minister Abbas Araghchi said of both countries:
“We have had close cooperation in the past, which still continues, and that includes military cooperation as well. Iran has had “good cooperation with these countries: politically, economically, even militarily.” It comes as US President Donald Trump is putting pressure on NATO countries to become involved in unblocking and securing the Strait of Hormuz.
Lebanon has also come under attack from Israel. And the latest death toll figures are creeping up with 1,444 dead in Iran, at least 15 in Israel, 13 US soldiers and 19 killed in Gulf states.
