Kataib Hezbollah representatives contacted Iraqi officials on Wednesday to negotiate the release of Shelly Kittleson, a kidnapped American journalist, in exchange for detainees held by the government. The Iranian-aligned group, known for launching daily rocket and drone strikes against U.S. targets in Iraq and Jordan, has held journalists and foreign nationals for years. Kittleson, a veteran Middle East reporter, was abducted Tuesday from Baghdad and transported to an undisclosed location.

Authorities tracked the kidnapping to a car chase where one militia member was captured. The demand for prisoner exchange echoes Kataib Hezbollah’s 2023 abduction of Israeli-Russian scholar Elizabeth Tsurkov, who endured two years of torture. The group, tied to Iran’s Quds Force, remains designated a U.S. foreign terrorist organization, complicating diplomatic efforts.

This development underscores the militia’s leverage in Iraqi politics and its role in regional tensions fueled by the U.S.-Israeli conflict against Iran.