Rubio Plans ‘Very Big Bounty’ on Taliban If Hostage Report Confirmed

Secretary of State Marco Rubio indicated on Saturday that the United States government may consider placing a “very big bounty” to locate top Taliban leadership after learning there may be more American hostages than previously reported to the public.

Newsweek reached out to the State Department and the Taliban for further comment by email on Saturday evening.

The Context

The Taliban, the group in control of the government of Afghanistan, earlier this week released two Americans in exchange for a Taliban figure in a prisoner swap as the group continues to seek international legitimacy over three years following their insurgency and conquest of the country.

The Americans were identified as Ryan Corbett, who was detained by the Taliban in August 2022 while on a business trip, and William McKenty, as confirmed by the House Foreign Affairs Committee in a statement released on January 21. The statement made mention of “the other Americans who remain wrongfully detained and held hostage in Afghanistan” without providing a number.

Billions of dollars in international funds remain frozen, and the Taliban seeks to normalize relations with the U.S. as many countries still refuse to recognize their rule.

What To Know

Rubio was sworn in as the new secretary of state on January 21 after receiving near-unanimous support from his former colleagues as he was confirmed with a vote of 99 senators backing his nomination. He hit the ground running as he addressed China and held a phone call with his counter part, Chinese Director of the CCP Central Foreign Affairs Commission and Foreign Minister Wang Yi.

He followed up on Saturday evening with a surprise post on X, formerly known as Twitter, in which he suggested that intelligence indicates there may be more American citizens being detained by the Taliban than what has been publicly disclosed.

“Just hearing the Taliban is holding more American hostages than has been reported,” Rubio wrote on X. He continued by stating, “If this is true, we will have to immediately place a VERY BIG bounty on their top leaders, maybe even bigger than the one we had on Bin Laden.”

The U.S. has also named George Glezmann and Mahmood Habibi as other Americans held by the Taliban, with ongoing efforts to secure their release. Habibi, a dual American and Afghan citizen, disappeared in 2022, according to the FBI, but the Taliban have denied that he is in custody.

The Taliban continue to demand the release of men such as Muhammed Rahim al Afghani, a detainee at Guantanamo Bay.

What People Are Saying

CBS Chief Foreign Affairs Correspondent and Face The Nation moderator Margaret Brennan wrote on X: “Notable threat to Taliban from US after the release earlier this week of 2 Americans. There are at least 2 *other Americans, including one legally designated as wrongfully detained and another unjustly detained. Rubio suggests even more….”

This is a developing story and will be updated as more information becomes available.

Update, 1/25/25 at 8:07 p.m. ET: This story has been updated with additional context and information.