By Jacob Jaffa

Copyright thejc

An Israeli-Russian graduate student who was kidnapped in Iraq in 2023 has been released. Elizabeth Tsurkov, who studied at Princeton University, was abducted by Kata’ib Hezbollah, a pro-Iran, Shi’ite militia that is incorporated into the Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF) and, therefore, is part of Iraq’s state security apparatus. “As a culmination of extensive efforts exerted by our security services over the course of many months, we announce the release of the Russian citizen, Elizabeth Tsurkov,” announced Iraq’s prime minister, Mohammed Shia al-Sudani. In his own statement, US President Trump claimed that Tsurkov had been tortured “for months” She has since been taken to the American embassy to “facilitate her reunion” with her sister, Emma, who is a US citizen. “My entire family is incredibly happy. We cannot wait to see Elizabeth and give her all the love we have been waiting to share for 903 days,” wrote Emma on X. “We are so thankful to President Trump and his Special Envoy, Adam Boehler. If Adam had not made my sister’s return his personal mission, I do not know where we would be.” The circumstances around the release deal are not clear, but the Times of Israel reported that it coincided with an agreement on US military withdrawal from Iraq. Tsurkov was in the country to study local militia groups for her PhD thesis when she was abducted. She was also active in human rights activism and volunteered for a high-profile NGO. She is reportedly set to travel to Israel in the coming days, where she will go through a similar procedure to the hostages released from Gaza. Her mother, Irina, told Army Radio: “It’s hard for me to breathe. “I’m going crazy, it’s crazy joy, happiness. I’ve waited for this moment for almost two and a half years.”