NEW: State Department Provides Update On Kidnapping Of American Journalist In Iraq

The U.S. State Department confirmed on Tuesday that it is aware of the kidnapping of American freelance journalist Shelly Kittleson in Baghdad and is working with Iraqi authorities and the FBI to secure her safe release.

A U.S. official stated that the department had fulfilled its duty-to-warn obligations regarding threats to Kittleson prior to the incident and is coordinating closely with Iraqi officials.

“We are closely tracking these reports. Due to privacy and other considerations, we have nothing further to share at this time,” the department said in an official statement.
Kittleson, 49, was abducted in broad daylight Tiesday in central Baghdad near the Palestine Hotel on Al-Saadoun Street. According to Iraqi media and security sources, armed men stopped her vehicle, forcibly removed her, and took her away in one car while transferring her to a second vehicle.

Iraqi security forces, acting on “precise intelligence,” pursued a vehicle believed to be linked to the kidnappers. The vehicle overturned during the chase in Babil province near Al-Haswa, resulting in the arrest of one suspect.

The other individuals involved fled, and Kittleson’s whereabouts and condition remain unknown as of the latest reports. No group has claimed responsibility for the abduction.

CCTV footage of the brazen kidnapping — which shows armed men in civilian clothes forcefully abducting Kittleson — has circulated widely on social media.

Photo: Al-Monitor

Iraq’s Interior Ministry confirmed the kidnapping of a foreign journalist and stated that specialized units had launched an immediate operation based on intelligence and field tracking. The U.S. Embassy in Baghdad maintains a high-level travel advisory for Iraq, citing risks including kidnapping by Iran-backed militias targeting U.S. citizens.

Shelly Kittleson is a Rome-based American freelance journalist specializing in the Middle East and Afghanistan. She began her career reporting from Afghanistan and has since provided extensive on-the-ground coverage from Iraq and Syria, often serving as a Baghdad correspondent.

Her work has focused on security issues, conflict dynamics, and post-conflict developments. She has contributed to Al-Monitor, Foreign Policy, Politico, BBC World Service, The National, Christian Science Monitor, and other international and Italian outlets.

She has received recognition for her reporting from war zones, including Italy’s Premio Caravella in 2017.

“We are deeply alarmed by the kidnapping of Al-Monitor contributor Shelly Kittleson in Iraq on Tuesday. We call for her safe and immediate release,” Al-Monitor said in a statement Tuesday. “

We stand by her vital reporting from the region and call for her swift return to continue her important work.”

The search remains ongoing as of this report.