Russia offered Afghan militants bounties to kill US troops: NYT

US intelligence has concluded that the Russian military offered bounties to Taliban-linked militants in Afghanistan to kill American troops and other coalition forces, the New York Times reported on Friday. Citing officials briefed on the matter, the Times said the United States determined months ago that a Russian military intelligence unit linked to assassination attempts in Europe had offered rewards for successful attacks last year. Islamist militants, or armed criminal elements closely associated with them, are believed to have collected some bounty money, the newspaper said. Of the 20 Americans killed in combat in 2019, the Times said, it was not clear which deaths were under suspicion.

Source: AFP