Foreign journalist kidnapped in Iraq: Interior Ministry

A foreign journalist has been kidnapped in Iraq, the Ministry of Interior confirms, without providing any information about the reporter’s identity.

The ministry said in a statement on Tuesday that the journalist was kidnapped by “unknown individuals” in Baghdad, according to the Iraqi News Agency (INA).

Security forces arrested one of the suspects and seized a vehicle used in the abduction after a pursuit of the kidnappers, the ministry said.

It added that efforts are continuing to find those involved in the kidnapping and secure the release of the journalist.

Iraq has experienced a rise in violence in recent weeks amid the US-Israel war on Iran, with Iraqi security forces targeted in attacks in Anbar province and other areas.

The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) said it was “deeply concerned” following media reports that US freelance journalist Shelley Kittleson was abducted.

“CPJ calls on Iraqi authorities to do everything in their power to locate Shelley Kittleson, ensure her immediate and safe release, and hold those responsible to account,” said the group’s Middle East regional director, Sara Qudah.

State Department official Dylan Johnson said in a statement on X that the US was “aware of the reported kidnapping of an American journalist” in Baghdad.

“The State Department previously fulfilled our duty to warn this individual of threats against them and we will continue to coordinate with the FBI to ensure their release as quickly as possible,” Johnson said.

He added that an individual with ties to Iraqi paramilitary group Kataib Hezbollah who was “believed to be involved in the kidnapping” was taken into custody by the Iraqi authorities.

‘Threats from all sides’

Press freedom groups have routinely called on Iraq to do more to protect journalists from intimidation and violence.

“Between political instability and financial pressure, journalists face threats from all sides and are up against the weakness of the state, which is failing in its duty to protect them,” Reporters Without Borders says on its website.

The organisation also noted that abductions are “often used to terrorise and silence” reporters. “Influential, high-profile journalists used to be the main targets of this form of intimidation but nowadays it is also used against lesser-known journalists,” the group said.

CPJ also has documented a series of press freedom violations since the US-Israel war on Iran began on February 28.

That includes an attack on a television crew in the northern Iraqi city of Kirkuk in mid-March that CPJ said was carried out by fighters affiliated with the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), a branch of the Iraqi armed forces that includes Iran-aligned members.