US offers $20m reward for information on Iran’s nuclear programme

The United States is offering a reward of up to $20 million, alongside possible relocation, for information about Iran’s nuclear programme, the US military announced on Friday.

The announcement comes as President Donald Trump renewed his claim that Tehran is interested in reaching an agreement to end the eight-month war.

The US State Department’s Rewards for Justice programme, “is offering a reward of up to $20 million and possible relocation for information about Iran’s nuclear program, including its facilities, equipment, and associated personnel, such as those in the scientific community,” the US Central Command said in a post on X.

Established in 1984, the programme operates under the State Department’s national security rewards initiative and offers financial incentives for information that helps protect American lives and interests.

In its statement, the State Department linked the reward to Iran’s “lack of compliance with the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) on safeguards obligations has led to the agency’s loss of ‘continuity of knowledge’ regarding Iran’s production and inventory of key components like centrifuges.

However, the department did not specify the particular information required to qualify for the maximum $20 million reward.

Trump has repeatedly maintained that US military operations have effectively destroyed Iran’s nuclear programme.

Speaking in West Palm Beach, Florida, on Friday night, the US president defended the attacks, saying:

“If we didn’t hit Iran, you wouldn’t have Israel today,” Trump said Friday night in West Palm Beach, Florida. “If they had nuclear, they would have used nuclear. They would have obliterated the Middle East.”

He also claimed that Iran, despite suffering significant damage to its economy and military during the conflict, was keen to reach an agreement to end the fighting.

“We’re dealing with them now. They want to make a deal very badly,” he said.

Meanwhile, diplomatic efforts involving mediators have intensified as countries seek to prevent a renewed outbreak of hostilities.

On Tuesday, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said his administration remained committed to resolving the crisis through dialogue.

Earlier in the week, Trump said there were still one or two targets he needed to “take care” of, including the site known as Pickaxe Mountain in central Iran. The location is suspected by the United States to house nuclear facilities, although Tehran has denied that it is a nuclear site.