US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced the release of American journalist Shelley Kittleson by the Iraqi armed group Kataib Hezbollah, who had kidnapped her several days ago.
He said officials from the Pentagon, the US FBI, and Iraq’s Supreme Judicial Council helped secure Kittleson’s release. The journalist was kidnapped in Baghdad in late March.
Kataib Hezbollah had said earlier on Tuesday that it would release Kittleson and that she must leave Iraq immediately.
Her release followed intense efforts by the Iraqi government and several influential Shiite leaders who had been pressuring the militant group to secure her release, an official familiar with the situation told Reuters.
The Middle East news website Al-Monitor reports that Shelley Kittleson was a freelance American journalist based in Rome who had covered several wars in the region. She also wrote articles for the website.
Social media platforms linked to Kataib Hezbollah circulated a video purporting to show Kittleson.
