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An American journalist was kidnapped off the streets of Baghdad, Iraq, by armed men in an abduction likely carried out by an Iranian-backed militia \u2014 and Iraqi security forces scrambled in their unsuccessful attempt to intercept the kidnappers.<\/p>\n
A group of armed men stopped Shelly Kittleson\u2019s car in the middle of the street, pulled her out, and quickly fled the scene with her in tow. Iraqi security forces immediately pursued, but were unable to stop the kidnappers,<\/p>\n
\nCCTV video shows the moment American journalist @shellykittleson<\/a> was taken in Baghdad. pic.twitter.com\/JqJcdW7TOb<\/a><\/p>\n
\u2014 Trey Yingst (@TreyYingst) March 31, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
CNN National Security Analyst and former Pentagon official Alex Plitsas stated<\/a> via X that Kittleson was likely taken hostage by Kataib Hezbollah, an Iranian-backed militia with ties to Iran\u2019s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.<\/p>\n
Kittleson, a journalist specializing in the Middle East who had reported for the BBC, Foreign Relations, and POLITICO, was in Baghdad reporting on Iraqi politics for the outlet Al-Monitor at the time of her kidnapping.<\/p>\n
The Iraqi Ministry of Interior said in a statement that efforts are underway to track down the perpetrators and rescue Kittleson.<\/p>\n
\u201cSecurity forces immediately launched an operation to apprehend the perpetrators, acting on precise intelligence and through intensive field operations, tracking the kidnappers\u2019 movements,\u201d a translated statement from the Iraqi Ministry of the Interior reads<\/a>. \u201cThe pursuit resulted in the interception of a vehicle belonging to the kidnappers, which overturned as they attempted to escape. Security forces were able to arrest one of the suspects and seize one of the vehicles used in the crime.\u201d<\/p>\n