Sofia Barbarani is a freelance journalist based in Baghdad. She has worked extensively in Iraq, the Kurdistan Region and Syria where she focused on the rise and fall of ISIS, the lives of women in conflict zones, security and politics. She has also reported from Tunisia, South Sudan, Venezuela, Cuba, southern Europe and the Gulf. Her words and images have appeared in leading print and online publications, including The Telegraph, The Economist, The Washington Post, The Guardian, The Times, Al Jazeera English and others. Sofia researched and wrote the 2015 Lonely Planet Iraq chapter and has been nominated for awards for her work in Syria and Venezuela.