This undated image provided by the Newlines Institute for Strategy and Policy on July 5, 2023, shows Elizabeth Tsurkov. (PHOTO / NEWLINES INSTITUTE FOR STRATEGY AND POLICY VIA AFP)
JERUSALEM – Israel said on Wednesday that an Israeli-Russian researcher has been held hostage by a Shiite militia in Iraq.
According to a statement released by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office, Elizabeth Tsurkov was abducted by Kata'ib Hezbollah, a paramilitary group that is part of the Iranian-backed Popular Mobilization Forces.
Tsurkov's mother, Irena, said in an interview with the Israeli state-owned Kan TV news that her daughter has been missing for two months
Tsurkov "is still alive and we hold Iraq responsible for her safety and well-being," Netanyahu's office said.
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Tsurkov is an academic and an expert in Middle East studies. She visited Iraq on her Russian passport, the office added, emphasizing that she traveled to Iraq "at her own initiative pursuant to work on her doctorate and academic research on behalf of Princeton University in the United States."
The office said that the matter is being handled by "the relevant parties in Israel out of concern for Elizabeth Tsurkov's security and well-being."
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Tsurkov's mother, Irena, said in an interview with the Israeli state-owned Kan TV news that her daughter has been missing for two months.
Tsurkov visited the Kurdish area in Iraq before traveling to Baghdad, where she disappeared, Kan TV news reported.