The three kidnapped American contractors were kidnapped by Iran backed militias in Baghdad. "Baghdad-based analyst Hisham al-Hashemi, who advises the government, said the kidnappings were meant to embarrass and weaken Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, who is trying to balance his country's relations with rival powers Iran and the United States." The reason behind their desire to embarrass the PM is because the Shi'ite militias were kept out of the battle against in Ramadi against IS because of a fear of increasing the sectarian divisions among the Sunni population in the city. This didn't seem to help as the Iraqi Army demolished 85% of the residential buildings in Ramadi during "clearing" operations.