Shelly Kittleson (Journalist) Age, Family, Biography

Some Lesser Known Facts About Shelly Kittleson

• When Shelly Kittleson was nineteen years old, she moved from United States to Italy. There, she did many jobs, including translator. After that, she learned the Russian.

• Later, she shifted to Uzbekistan from Italy. After that, she moved to Afghanistan, where she started working as a writer and photographer. During this time, she started reading National Geographic magazine.

• In 2010, Shelly Kittleson began working as a Freelance Journalist for many noted US, Italian, and global news channels. She started her career reporting from Afghanistan and the Middle East.

• In 2012, she began working as a journalist at RAI Radio 3. She served in the position till 2014.
  

  Shelly Kittleson while interviewing the then spokesman for the Popular Mobilization Units, Ahmad al-Asaadi, and the head of Liwa Ali al-Akbar, Ali Hamdani, in Hawija

• That same year, Shelly Kittleson began travelling to Syria.

• In May 2012, she released a radio documentary on the legal system of Afghanistan. The title of the documentary was “Lex e Sharia: La Giustizia Afgana in Mani Italiane.”

• The documentary showed how Italy changed the legal system of Afghanistan, and how it combined the informal system with the formal one.

• In August 2012, Shelly Kittleson started working as an Italian-to-English translator at ANSA, a news channel in Italy,

• She then joined Oltreradio.it in Rome in February 2013. She worked as a journalist in the news channel till March 2013.
  

  Shelly Kittleson while reporting news

• In September 2014, she joined Al-Monitor, a news website, as a Journalist. She reported news from Iraq, Syria, and Afghanistan.

• That same year, Shelly Kittleson attended a security training program, which was organised in Beirut for freelance reporters. After the completion of this program, she remained updated on news from war zones.
  

  Shelly Kittleson while interviewing fighters west of Beiji, Iraq, in a village in the desert stretching westward to the Syrian border

• In 2017, she received the Caravella Prize for her work in war areas. The award was granted at the ninth season of the Mediterranean Journalists festival, held in Otranto, Italy.

• In January 2023, Shelly Kittleson began working as a Freelance Journalist for Al Majalla, an Arab magazine. During this period, she reported news from Ukraine, Afghanistan, and the Middle East.
  

  Shelly Kittleson posing with Iraqi Counterterrorism Services Officers in Anbar, Iraq

• She often writes for Il Foglio, New Lines Magazine, and Politico.

• In April 2026, Shelly Kittleson made headlines when she was kidnapped in Baghdad, Iraq. Reportedly, one of her kidnappers was associated with the Iranian military.

• The news of her kidnapping was reported by Al-Monitor, news channel, where she worked as a journalist.

• The ministry of Iraq then claimed that when the Iraqi security personnel chased the car of the kidnappers, it flipped and one suspect was arrested on the spot.

• Later, an official statement from the US state department stated that the arrested suspect was a member of Kataib Hezbollah, an Iranian military group.
  

  A CCTV footage of Shelly Kittleson’s kidnapping

• After that, the assistant secretary of state for global public affairs, Dylan Johnson, confirmed the news of her kidnapping on social media. He wrote,
  

  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.”

• Al-Monitor, a US based news channel, then claimed that Shelly Kittleson was kept near a hotel in Baghdad, Iraq, after kidnapping. On one of its social media accounts, it posted,
  

  It is aware of Kittleson’s kidnapping and working with the Iraqi government to secure her release.”

• Shelly Kittleson is an animal lover and has a pet dog. She often shares pictures of her pet on social media.
  

  Shelly Kittleson with her pet dog

• She likes travelling to distant places and reading books in her free time.
  

  Shelly Kittleson in Palmyra, Syria