U.S. offers reward to locate abducted Afghan American in Afghanistan
June 25 (UPI) -- The United States is offering a reward of up to $5 million for information locating Mahmood Shah Habibi, an Afghan American businessman who was abducted in Afghanistan nearly three years ago.
The reward from the U.S. State Department's Rewards for Justice Program was announced Tuesday by department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce, who said during a regular press briefing, "We have determined that he has been disappeared, and that he has not been heard from."
According to a release from the FBI in August, Habibi, a contractor for Kabul-based telecommunications company Asia Consultancy Group, and his driver were kidnapped from their vehicle near his home in the Afghan capital on Aug. 10, 2022.
It is believed that he was taken by the Taliban along with 29 other employees of his company, all of whom, except for Habibi, have since been released.
"He has not been heard from since his initial arrest, and the Taliban has yet to provide any information regarding his whereabouts or condition," the State Department said in a statement.
Bruce said they are hoping the $5 million reward will entice someone to come forward.
"It makes a difference in everyone's lives that we might get some information about him," she said.
The U.S. military withdrew from Afghanistan in 2021. In its absence, the Taliban regained control of the Middle Eastern country.
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