US journalist kidnapped in Baghdad and security forces pursuing captors, Iraqi officials say

An American journalist was kidnapped in Baghdad on Tuesday and security forces are pursuing her captors, Iraqi officials said.

The Iraqi interior ministry said in a statement that a foreign journalist had been kidnapped, without giving more details.

Two Iraqi security officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to speak publicly about the case, said the kidnapped journalist was a woman with US citizenship.

They said that two cars were involved in the kidnapping, one of which crashed and was apprehended while being pursued by authorities near the town of Al-Haswa in Babil province southwest of Baghdad and the journalist was transferred to a second car that fled the scene.

People walk at a local market near the Kadhimiya Shrine at sunset in Baghdad, 31 March, 2026 (People walk at a local market near the Kadhimiya Shrine at sunset in Baghdad, 31 March, 2026)

The interior ministry said that security forces had launched an operation to track down the kidnappers, "acting on precise intelligence and through intensive field operations" after intercepting a vehicle belonging to the kidnappers that overturned as they tried to flee.

One suspect was arrested and one of the vehicles used in the kidnapping was seized, but others remain on the loose, the statement said.

Two security sources said that the US journalist was kidnapped from central Baghdad, on Saadoun Street.

They added that an alert was circulated to all checkpoints, leading to a pursuit of the kidnappers as they headed southwest of Baghdad toward Babil province.

The sources said the kidnappers' vehicle, with the journalist inside, was involved in a crash near the town of Al-Haswa.

A spokesperson for the US Embassy in Baghdad declined to comment.

The US State Department said in a statement, "The Trump Administration has no higher priority than the safety and security of Americans. We are closing tracking these reports. Due to privacy and other considerations, we have nothing further to share at this time."

It was not immediately clear if the kidnapping was related to the ongoing war, but Iran-backed militias in Iraq have launched regular attacks on US facilities in the country since the beginning of hostilities on 28 February.

Since the start of the war, the US embassy has warned of kidnapping risks and urged citizens in the country to leave.