Family hails release of Israeli-Russian researcher Elizabeth Tsurkov in Iraq

Family and friends of Israeli-Russian researcher Elisabeth Tsurkov have welcomed her release from the captivity of an Iraqi armed group after more than two years.

Tsurkov was kidnapped in Baghdad in March 2023 while in the country doing research. Kataeb Hezbollah, an Iran-backed armed group, were held responsible.

US President Donald Trump and Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani announced on Tuesday that they had successfully secured Tsurkov's release.

"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," Sudani said on X, avoiding reference to her also being an Israeli, a nationality not permitted entry to Iraq.

Sudani said she was located on 9 September, retrieved, and subsequently handed over to the US Embassy.

Tsurkov's sister Emma, writing on X, said she and her family were overjoyed at the announcement of her release.

"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," she wrote.

The prime minister blamed a "group of outlaws" for Tsurkov's kidnapping and said it did not "reflect the reality of the stable security situation in all Iraqi cities".

Trump, on the other hand, said she had been released by Kataeb Hezbollah, whom he referred to as "MILITANT Hezbollah" on his Truth Social site.

Despite the comments by Sudani, Kataeb Hezbollah have denied there was any security service involvement in Tsurkov's release.

"She was released and not liberated," a source from the group told AFP.

"No military operation was carried out to free her."

The source said she was released according to a set of conditions, the "most important of which was to facilitate the withdrawal of US forces without a fight and to spare Iraq any conflicts or fighting".

Tsurkov, a fellow at New Lines Institute and a doctoral student at Princeton University's Department of Politics who has previously written for Middle East Eye, was reportedly captured after leaving Ridha Alwan coffee shop in Baghdad's Karrada district.

A number of pro-Iran commentators and politicians have accused Tsurkov of being an Israeli spy, which her family has denied.

There are no diplomatic relations between Israel and Iraq, whose government is close to Israel's arch-rival Iran, and Israelis are not allowed to visit the country.

US troop withdrawal

Kataeb Hezbollah is considered a terrorist organisation by the US and since 2003 has been involved in numerous sectarian killings, kidnappings and repression of anti-government protesters.

However, the group is also a member of the irregular Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF) that is officially under Baghdad's control, and it is also close to a number of politicians represented in Iraq's parliament.

Last month, US troops began withdrawing from two key Iraqi bases in a sign that the Trump administration is following through with plans to end American military presence in Iraq.

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Iraqi news site Kurdistan 24 reported on the sudden withdrawal from the Ain al-Asad airbase in western Anbar province and the Victory Base Complex, located within the Baghdad International Airport.

In September 2024, Reuters reported that US and Iraqi negotiators had agreed on a plan during the Biden administration to end the US military presence, which required only the sign-off of leaders in Baghdad and Washington.

According to Reuters, the plan called for all US-led coalition forces to leave the Ain al-Asad airbase and significantly reduce their presence in Baghdad by September 2025.

The move also comes against the backdrop of Israel's ongoing genocide in Gaza.

The Islamic Resistance in Iraq, of which Kataeb Hezbollah is a part, have launched at least 70 attacks against US assets in Iraq since October 2023, in solidarity with the Palestinians.

In response, the US has carried out a number of air strikes in Baghdad targeting PMF headquarters.