( CNN ) Al Qaeda has fired a verbal salvo in a multifaction battle over Yemen , saying it 's offering 20 kilograms of gold to anyone who kills or captures two prominent Shia Muslim opponents , including the leader of the rebels who overtook Yemen 's capital . Yemen-based Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula , in a news release and wanted poster distributed online , offers the reward for the death or capture of Houthi leader Abdelmalik Bedrudin Al-Houthi and former Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh . Converted to currency , the gold reward would be worth about $ 774,000 . AQAP referred to Al-Houthi and Saleh as the `` two heads of evil . '' AQAP is one of several factions fighting to control Yemen . With Sunni Islamic roots , AQAP is a bitter enemy of the Houthi faction , which is Shia and widely believed to be supported by Iran . Yemen has been descending into chaos in the weeks since Houthi rebels -- minority Shiites who have long complained of being marginalized in the majority Sunni country -- forced Yemeni President Abdu Rabu Mansour Hadi from power in January . The Houthis , allied with fighters loyal to Saleh , have since faced resistance from not only AQAP , but also a number of groups including forces loyal to Hadi . Also opposing the Houthis are Saudi Arabia and other predominantly Sunni nations , which last month began airstrikes against the rebels . At least 540 people -- including 311 civilians -- have died as a result of the fighting , the United Nations said Wednesday . A U.N. expert on refugees said other nations should prepare for `` massive displacement '' of Yemenis seeking safety . `` The international community must prepare for a worst case scenario , '' Chaloka Beyani , a professor of International Law at the London School of Economics , said . `` While efforts to reach a diplomatic solution are essential , the picture on the ground is extremely bleak and humanitarian responses must be stepped up as a matter of urgency . '' About 1,000 people have already fled their homes during the two weeks of conflict .
The value of the bounty in American dollars is about $ 5000 . Al Qaeda in the bounty hunt include a Houthi leader and a former Yemeni leader killed or captured .