Iraq US Kidnapped Journalist
This 2025 photo taken in Iraq and provided by Barb Kittleson shows Shelly Kittleson, an American freelance journalist who was kidnapped Tuesday, March 31, 2026, in Iraq. (Barb Kittleson via AP)
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American journalist Shelly Kittleson, who was kidnapped in Baghdad last week, has been released. That's according to an Iraqi official with direct knowledge of the situation. The official spoke on condition of anonymity on Tuesday because he was not authorized to comment publicly. He says Kittleson was freed in the afternoon. He did not share her current whereabouts but said that prior to her release, she had been held in Baghdad. The powerful Iran-backed Iraqi militia Kataib Hezbollah said in a statement earlier in the day that it had decided to free the journalist.
