Jill Carroll

The sister of an American journalist kidnapped in Iraq has appealed for news of the hostage.

Katie Carroll, the twin sister of kidnapped journalist Jill Carroll, says the family has no information about Carroll's condition and is appealing for information that, she says, could help Jill.

She says she hopes the journalist's captors will show the world that they are merciful to innocent women by freeing Carroll.

Al-Aribiyah, the Arab television network, aired the appeal Wednesday.

Carroll, a freelancer for the Christian Science Monitor, was kidnapped in Baghdad almost three months ago. She was last seen on a message taped by her captors and aired in early February.

Last week, three Western hostages of the Christian Peacemaker Teams were freed in Baghdad. But Carroll's fate is unknown.

The U.S. ambassador to Iraq, Zalmay Khalilzad, said last week that he remained hopeful about Ms. Carroll although he had no new information. He said previously that he believed Carroll was alive.