An American journalist, Shelly Kittleson, who was kidnapped by an Iran-backed militant group in Baghdad, shared her last Instagram post on March 21. The 49-year-old journalist was abducted on March 31.
Kittleson's last post featured a photo of an empty desert with clouds covering the sky, captioned 'Syrian desert. March 2026.'
Her abduction was confirmed by Al-Monitor, an independent media outlet for which she had written. Al-Monitor called for her safe and immediate release.
Kittleson's kidnapping was caught on camera, with footage showing her being bundled into the back of a car by armed men at a busy intersection in Baghdad.
No one has claimed responsibility for Kittleson's kidnapping, but a former Pentagon official believes she may have been taken hostage by the Iraqi Shiite paramilitary group Kataib Hezbollah.
