American journalist Micah Garen and his Iraqi translator were apparently abducted in Nasiriyah on Saturday while walking in an open market.

Garen, a founder of an independent photo/documentary company, Four Corners Media, was investigating archeological sites in Iraq. His portfolio of images from southern Iraq is here. He published a report in Archaeology magazine on specialized U.S. troops hunting down armed looters. He kept in touch with a group of young associates of the Carnegie Council of Ethics and International Affairs here; his last message was dated July 30.

Hoping for his and his translator’s safe return…