The U.S. is offering up to $20 million and a possible new home to anyone who helps expose what is left of Iran’s nuclear program, and officials say it is meant to fill the gaps that nuclear inspectors cannot see.
Story Highlights
- The State Department’s Rewards for Justice program is offering up to $20 million and possible relocation for information on Iran’s nuclear program.
- It wants tips on nuclear sites, equipment, scientists and other staff, and the movement of any of them.
- The State Department pointed to Iran’s failure to cooperate with United Nations nuclear inspectors.
- President Trump has said the U.S. still has “one or two sites” in Iran to deal with.
U.S. Puts Cash on the Table for Iran’s Nuclear Secrets
On Friday, November 6, U.S. Central Command, the military command in charge of American forces in the Middle East, posted the offer on X. Rewards for Justice, a State Department program that pays people for information on threats to U.S. security, “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, or the movement of any of the above.” Relocation means the U.S. may help move a tipster and his family to safety. The post linked to a page where people can send tips.
The State Department tied the offer to Iran’s “lack of compliance with the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) on safeguards obligations.” The IAEA is the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog. Safeguards are the inspections and checks meant to make sure nuclear material is not turned toward a weapon. Because of Iran’s limits on inspectors, the agency has lost what it calls “continuity of knowledge,” an unbroken record of how many centrifuges Iran is making and where they are. Centrifuges are the fast-spinning machines that enrich uranium. Iran has long said its nuclear program is peaceful.
Why the Offer Comes After the Strikes
In June 2025, U.S. forces struck Iran’s nuclear sites at Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan. Trump said afterward that Iran’s “key enrichment facilities have been completely and totally obliterated.” The Pentagon later said the program had likely been set back one to two years. On February 28, 2026, the U.S. and Israel launched strikes that began a new war with Iran.
On Saturday, October 31, Trump told reporters at his Florida home, “We’ve knocked out their nuclear. We still have to take care of, I would say one or two sites, but we can do that in 10 minutes.” He named Pickaxe Mountain, a suspected underground nuclear site. Iran denies any nuclear work takes place there. U.S. officials have said that destroying buildings is not the same as removing the scientists, equipment and know-how behind a nuclear program, according to reports. A paid tip can reach the people and parts that a bomb cannot.
Why Inspectors’ Blind Spots Matter
In a 2026 report, the IAEA said it could not verify the status of Iran’s declared nuclear sites and the nuclear material at them. The Institute for Science and International Security, a Washington research group that tracks nuclear programs, described a near-total loss of monitoring after Iran cut off access, along with a stockpile of enriched uranium that has not been accounted for.
That is where human sources come in. A scientist, a worker or a driver can point to a hidden lab, a moved stockpile or a shipment that satellites miss. The reward puts a price on that kind of inside knowledge and offers safety to the people willing to share it.
How This Fits a Broader Pressure Campaign
The offer comes as talks to end the war continue, with Qatar and Pakistan in the middle. Trump has said Tehran wants a deal to end the war. On October 31, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Trump had not decided on fresh strikes and that the U.S. was open to a diplomatic solution. Reports carried no response from Iran’s government to the reward.
Rewards for Justice already offers up to $20 million for information on Iranian government hostage-taking and up to $10 million for information on Iranian hackers tied to the country’s intelligence ministry and Revolutionary Guard. The new offer aims the same tool at the nuclear program itself. For Americans, the goal is plain: find whatever the strikes missed before it can threaten U.S. troops, allies or the homeland.
Sources:
thegatewaypundit.com, rewardsforjustice.net, khan.co.kr, iaea.org, isis-online.org, rewardsforjustice.net
