World
American journalist Shelly Kittleson kidnapped by armed men in Baghdad, terrifying footage shows
An American journalist who frequently covered the Middle East has reportedly been kidnapped in the Iraqi capital Baghdad, with terrifying surveillance footage showing armed men bundling her into the back of a car.
Tuesday’s abduction of Shelly Kittleson, 49, from Monticello, Wisconsin, was confirmed by Al-Monitor, the independent media outlet for which she had written.
Kittleson, who has written extensively for outlets including BBC World, Politico, and Foreign Policy, has spent years reporting from war zones in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Syria.
Footage from local outlets shared on X reportedly shows Kittleson being bundled into the back of a car by armed men after they stopped her at a busy intersection in Baghdad.
News reports say she was snatched near the Baghdad Hotel, a stone’s throw from the heavily-militarized Green Zone, and state that two vehicles were involved in her kidnapping.
“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.
“We stand by her vital reporting from the region and call for her swift return to continue her important work,” the statement concluded.
Authorities intercepted a vehicle believed to belong to Kittleson’s abductors that flipped over as they tried to flee, and arrested one suspected kidnapper, Iraq’s Interior Ministry said.
However, the freelance journalist was not in the vehicle, and her current whereabouts are unknown.
The second vehicle which she was traveling in was last seen heading south out of Baghdad.
“Efforts are ongoing to track down others involved and free the abducted person,” the ministry said.
Trump administration sources have confirmed that they were aware of the threat against Kittleson and had advised her against traveling to Iraq, Al-Monitor reported.
The State Department is working with Iraqi authorities to try to secure her release, a US official told the outlet.
No further details have been released by Kittleson’s abductors, and no ransom demands have been made public.
In recent weeks, the US embassy in Iraq urged American citizens to leave the country due to the regional war.
Iraq has seen increasing violence since the start of the conflict because of the presence of both US troops and pro-Iran armed groups.
One such group, Kataib Hezbollah, previously kidnapped US student Elizabeth Tsurkov in Baghdad in 2023.
The Russian-Israeli citizen was finally released in 2025.
