Crime

By Pesach Benson • September 10, 2025

Jerusalem, 10 September, 2025 (TPS-IL) — Elisabeth Tsurkov, the Russian-Israeli doctoral student held captive in Iraq for more than two years arrived in Israel, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office confirmed on Wednesday night.

Tsurkov, now 38, was a Princeton University doctoral student and fellow at the New Lines Institute for Strategy and Policy whose work focused on the influence of pro-Iranian factions and the movement headed by Shi’ite cleric Moqtada Sadr. Tsurkov was in Baghdad doing field research, presumably entering Iraq with her Russian passport when she disappeared in March 2023.

Her abduction was confirmed in November 2023, when a propaganda video circulated by Iran-backed Iraqi militias appeared on Telegram. Israeli officials accused the Iran-backed Kataeb Hezbollah of involvement in Tsurkov’s abduction.

Tsurkov will be hospitalized at the Sheba Medical Center in Ramat Gan, following the same medical protocols as hostages who returned from Gaza.

U.S. President Donald Trump announced Tsurkov’s release on Tuesday night, noting she had been held and tortured for months and was now at the American Embassy in Iraq. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu expressed relief and solidarity with her family, pledging to continue efforts to recover all hostages.

Mossad chief David Barnea thanked his Cypriot counterpart for his assistance faciltating Tsurkov humanitarian transit via Cyprus.