Princeton student freed after 903 days following 'months of torture' in Hezbollah captivity

An Israeli-Russian Princeton graduate has been freed after spending 903 days in a Kata’ib Hezbollah captivity.

Elizabeth Tsurkov, who entered Iraq to do research, had gone missing there back in early 2023 and was later confirmed to be alive in July of that same year.

Tsurkov, who holds Israeli and Russian passports, entered Iraq using her Russian passport, according to the Israeli government.

Israel claimed she was abducted in Baghdad by pro-Iranian militants after being accused of being a spy in March 2023, with a video featuring the 37-year-old student later being broadcast on Iraqi television just a few months later in November.

"Kata'ib Hezbollah, which is a separate entity from the armed group Hezbollah in Lebanon, is part of Iraq’s security apparatus under the umbrella of the state-funded Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF), a Shia paramilitary dominated by Iran-backed armed groups," explains Al Jazeera.

While the circumstances of Tsurkov’s release are not immediately clear, US President Donald Trump officially announced the news in a social media post shared yesterday (9 September).

Taking to Truth Social, he penned: "I am pleased to report that Elizabeth Tsurkov, a Princeton Student, whose sister is an American Citizen, was just released by Kata’ib Hezbollah (MILITANT Hezbollah), and is now safely in the American Embassy in Iraq after being tortured for many months."

"I will always fight for JUSTICE, and never give up. HAMAS, RELEASE THE HOSTAGES, NOW!" he continued, referring to the captives held in Gaza, who were taken from Israel during Hamas' 7 October, 2023, attack.

Since then, Israel has killed over 54,000 Palestinians, approximately 70 percent of whom are women and children, and injured over 123,000, per the Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect.

"An estimated 14,000 more individuals are likely missing or buried under rubble of destroyed buildings. Nearly 70 per cent of civilian infrastructure across the Gaza Strip has been damaged or destroyed," the advocacy organisation adds.

Additionally, the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry (CoI) on the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT), including East Jerusalem, and Israel has determined that 'Israel has committed war crimes and crimes against humanity during its military operations and attacks in Gaza, including starvation as a method of warfare, intentionally directing attacks against civilians and civilian objects, sexual violence, torture, forcible transfer, deliberate attacks on medical personnel and facilities and others'.

Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani likewise confirmed that Tsurkov had been released, saying in a statement: "We reaffirm, once again, that we will not tolerate any compromise in enforcing the law and upholding the authority of the state, nor will we allow anyone to undermine the reputation of Iraq and its people."

Following the announcement, Elizabeth's sister, Emma Tsurkov, who has campaigned publicly for her freedom, shared a statement on X.

"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. 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," she wrote.

Emma concluded: "We also want to thank Josh Harris and his team at the US Embassy in Baghdad for the support they provided to our sister and the team at the nonprofit Global Reach who advocated relentlessly for my sister’s safe return."