American Journalist Shelly Kittleson Kidnapped in Baghdad

American journalist Shelly Kittleson was kidnapped in Baghdad, Iraq, the country's Interior Ministry said on Tuesday.

The Details: Kittleson previously worked for the Washington, DC-based Middle East-focused news outlet, Al-Monitor. Assistant Secretary of State for Global Public Affairs Dylan Johnson did not mention Kittleson by name, but said the State Department believes "an individual with ties to the Iranian-aligned militia group Kataib Hizballah believed to be involved in the kidnapping has been taken into custody by Iraqi authorities." CCTV footage that has surfaced showed two men pushing a woman on a street corner into a car.

Anonymous Tips: Al-Monitor reported that an anonymous US official told it the State Department is aware of the incident and working with the Iraqi government to secure Kittleson's release. Two anonymous Iraqi security officials reportedly told Associated Press (Left bias) that the kidnapped journalist is a woman and a US citizen. AP reported another anonymous US official said Kittleson was warned several times that she was at risk and should leave Iraq immediately.

For Context: Kittleson has also previously contributed to Foreign Policy (Center), BBC (Center), Politico (Lean Left), New Lines Magazine, and others.

How The Media Covered It: As of early Wednesday, outlets across the spectrum covered the news similarly. On Thursday, AP published a feature that said Kittleson "is known for pursuing gutsy, low-budget assignments" often "without formal assignments from editors" in "lawless corners of Iraq where militia rule outweighs government control." The outlet described her as "kind and spiritual" and a "respected" journalist.

This is a developing story and may be updated as new reports emerge. Written by the AllSides staff (of humans). Learn more. Support our mission. Suggest an improvement to this summary.