Iraq’s interim prime minister announced on Monday the arrest of a suspected high-ranking financial leader of ISIS who was detained outside of Iraq.
Mustafa al Kadhimi, Iraq’s interim prime minister who came to power last year, tweeted the news that Sami Jasim was in custody.
“While our ISF heroes focused on securing the elections, their INIS colleagues were conducting a complex external operation to capture Sami Jasim, who was in charge of Daesh finance, and a deputy of Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi,” the tweet read. “Long live Iraq, and our brave heroes.”
While our ISF heroes focused on securing the elections, their INIS colleagues were conducting a complex external operation to capture Sami Jasim, who was in charge of Daesh finance, and a deputy of Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi.
Long live Iraq, and our brave heroes.— Mustafa Al-Kadhimi مصطفى الكاظمي (@MAKadhimi) October 11, 2021
The United States said they were awarding up to $5 million for information on Jasim because of his alleged role in the finances of the terrorist organization. The bounty is part of the State Department’s “Rewards for Justice” program.
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“While serving as IS deputy in southern Mosul in 2014, Jasim reportedly served as the equivalent of ISIS’s finance minister, supervising the group’s revenue-generating operations from illicit sales of oil, gas, antiquities, and minerals,” the State Department’s website said.
Jasim was first aligned with Iraqi al Qaeda leader Abu Musab al Zarqawi before he met ISIS leader Abu Bakr al Baghdadi in 2012, an Iraqi national security officer told the Washington Post. He held various positions within ISIS, including within the judiciary and industry ministries. He became a deputy to Baghdadi in 2015 when he moved to Syria to join ISIS. He remained with Baghdadi until the U.S. successfully killed Baghdadi in 2019.
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The news comes as Iraq faces a democratic election to choose their next prime minister — Kadhimi is not running for reelection, however some believe he hopes for a hung parliament which would be his best chance at remaining in power.
