Iraq released a most-wanted list of 41 names Sunday, including Saddam Hussein’s wife and eldest daughter, as well as the new leader of al-Qaida in Iraq and one of the ousted president’s closest allies.
The government also announced a bounty for several figures on the list.
“We are releasing this list so that our people can know their enemies,” National Security Adviser Mouwafak al-Rubaie said at a news conference. He added that countries hosting those on the list and Interpol had been informed.
The largest reward was $10 million for Izzat Ibrahim al-Douri, a former top official in the Saddam regime who has eluded capture since the U.S.-led invasion more than three years ago. Al-Douri was believed to have played a major role in launching the insurgency.
The government also offered a $50,000 reward for Abu Ayyub al-Masri, who replaced al-Qaida in Iraq leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi after his death in a June 7 U.S. airstrike northeast of Baghdad. The announcement came just two days after the U.S. administration approved a reward up to $5 million in exchange for al-Masri, whose real name is Abu Hamza al-Muhajer.
“Those people are carrying out bombings and random killings as they aim to inflict damage on the Iraqi people and ignite a sectarian war between Shiites and Sunnis,” al-Rubaie said in announcing the list.
Iraq: 'We will chase them'
Saddam’s wife, Sajida Khairallah Tulfah, who is believed to be in Qatar and his eldest daughter, Raghad, who has been living in Jordan, also were named, but no reward was offered for information on them.
“We have contacted all the neighboring countries and they know what we want. Some of these countries are cooperating with us,” he said. “We will chase them inside and outside Iraq. We will chase them one after the other.”
The national security adviser also said authorities were closing in on the Egyptian-born al-Masri.
“We were able to infiltrate his network. You will hear news within the coming weeks,” he said.
Al-Rubaie stressed the list was separate from that issued by the U.S. military. Most of its members have been either captured or killed.
“This is an Iraqi list that has nothing to do with the 55-member list issued by the American government,” al-Rubaie said.