Iraqi Militia Releases Israeli Hostage Following U.S. Pressure

Executive Summary:

• The release of Elizabeth Tsurkov, an Israeli researcher held hostage since 2023 by the Kataib Hezbollah militia in Iraq, highlights the Iraqi state’s ongoing inability to restrain Iran-backed militias and underscores the limited authority of Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani over powerful armed groups entrenched in the state apparatus.
• A new U.S. Executive Order appears to have pressured Baghdad to act, demonstrating that targeted U.S. leverage can influence militia behavior—even as Iraq’s internal power dynamics continue to shield these groups from accountability.

The release of kidnapped Israeli researcher Elizabeth Tsurkov (Hebrew: אליזבט צורקוב) has exposed the Iraqi government’s continuing weakness in the face of Iran-backed militias. Tsurkov, an Israeli researcher at Princeton University, was kidnapped in Baghdad in March 2023. Israel consistently accused Kataib Hezbollah (Arabic: كتائب حزب الله), a distant relative of the Lebanese Hezbollah and one of the biggest Iran-backed Iraqi Shia militias, of kidnapping Tsurkov. U.S. President Donald Trump announced her release on September 10. U.S. pressure likely played a major role in her rescue, but her crisis is a reminder of the unresolved tension between Iraq’s network of Iran-backed militias that exert heavy influence on the Shia-led government, and competing Western interests (Al Arabiya, September 10). 

Kataib Hezbollah’s Influence and Power

Kataib Hezbollah’s role in Tsurkov’s kidnapping underscores militias’ deep influence within the Iraqi state. Kataib Hezbollah never openly acknowledged that it had kidnapped Tsurkov. Pro-militia media and analysts amplified the militia’s claim that Tsurkov was an Israeli spy, while the Iraqi government position, sympathetic to the Shia militias, was indecisive (X/@SalamAdel76, November 8). Iraqi officials made public promises to find Tsurkov and investigate her case, while no meaningful action was taken (Al Jazeera, July 7, 2023). She was eventually left by her captors into a deserted house in Baghdad, where the police were tipped off to her presence and recovered her (Asharq Al-Awsat, September 13). 

Kataib Hezbollah is one of the most influential militias in Iraq. One of its former leaders, Abd al-Aziz al-Muhammadawi, or “Abu Fadak” (Arabic: “عبد العزيز المحمداوي, “أبو فدك) is the current Chief of Staff of the Popular Mobilization Forces (Arabic: قوات الحشد الشعبي, PMF), the umbrella organization that includes all of the Iraqi Shia militias (Counter Extremism Project, accessed November 19). While no official Iraqi statement implicated the PMF or Kataib Hezbollah in Tsurkov’s kidnapping and Kataib Hezbollah never claimed responsibility, it was an open secret in Iraq that Tsurkov was kidnapped by Iran-backed militias. 

Iraqi security forces made little effort to free Tsurkov for most of her captivity. Prime Minister Mohammed Shiaa al-Sudani stated that his government had no clue about the location of the kidnapped researcher until a few weeks before Tsurkov’s release. It is far more likely that security forces could not and did not want to confront the militias over the issue (Arabi21, September 10).

Tsurkov’s Release

Tsurkov’s eventual release reflected quiet negotiations and competing foreign interests in Baghdad. Rumors circulated that these concessions could come from the United States—or even indirectly from Israel—via Iraqi intermediaries, along with reports of likely militias’ demands in return for the release of Tsurkov. Even rumors of ransom-and-release circulated regarding Israel freeing Hezbollah-affiliated Lebanese prisoners in Israel in turn for the Israeli hostage (Amwaj.media, January 30). Meanwhile, Tsurkov remained in custody with no indication as to her whereabouts. 

Tsurkov possesses both Russian and Israeli citizenship. She entered Iraq on her Russian passport, as Iraq does not issue visas for Israeli citizens. Russia did not show any interest in using its ties with Iraq or Iran to secure her release (Erem News, September 11).  

The Tipping Point

A September 5 U.S. Executive Order forced Iraq’s hand and changed Tsurkov’s fortune. The order places countries that support or tolerate kidnapping of U.S. citizens in a new category of “state sponsor of wrongful detention” (The White House (.gov), September 5; CBS News, September 5). Although Tsurkov was not a U.S. citizen, she had been in the process of completing her doctorate at Princeton University when she was kidnapped. Likewise, Israel did not possess sufficient leverage to negotiate her release. Tsurkov’s sister lives in the United States and engaged U.S. and Iraqi officials relentlessly to help release her sister, and may have had some effect on the decision (YouTube/Alhurra – قناة الحرة, April 20, 2024).

The Executive Order was received in Iraq as a possible threat from Washington. Subsequently, Tsurkov was released a few days after its announcement. 

Another theory suggests Tsurkov’s release was an effect of the September 9 Israeli strike on a Hamas delegation in Qatar. The Israeli attack failed to kill its targets, while targeting Qatari territory provoked outrage and even U.S. disapproval. Tsurkov was released on September 10.  While evidence is only circumstantial, the timing of Tsurkov’s release might have provided Israeli prime minister Benyamin Netanyahu some good news to offset criticism after the failed attack in Qatar. 

Prime minister Al-Sudani presents himself as a pragmatist who wishes to spare Iraq from going to war with Israel. In July, he claimed to have prevented 29 militia rocket attacks against Israel in order to avoid Israeli retaliation (Sky News Arabia, July 29). Nonetheless, he is widely viewed as somewhat pro-Iran, and unable to truly rein in the PMF.

Conclusion

Tsurkov’s detainment and release have led to the embarrassment of the Iraqi government and the country’s Shia militias. Since her release, Tsurkov confirmed that Kataib Hezbollah was the group that kidnapped her and has held interviews exposing what she witnessed of the militia’s modus operandi and internal proceedings—even claiming that one of the group’s senior commanders is illiterate. Her comments to media platforms (including Arabic-language interviews easily accessible to an Iraqi audience) have led to what may become an ongoing scandal and operational issue for Iraq’s militias, as the extent of their embeddedness within official state apparatuses is fully exposed (X/@omaraljmmal, September 17; September 22; X/@Elizrael, November 3; YouTube/AlHadath الحدث, November 7). Meanwhile, there has been no official attempt to enforce accountability against Kataib Hezbollah or similar groups. 

The wider militia movement is still an essential part of the ruling Shia coalition to which the prime minister belongs (Asharq Al-Awsat, October 3). Nonetheless, the Iraqi prime minister has undoubtfully been relieved by Tsurkov’s release. Israel has one less reason to attack Iraq, while al-Sudani received some praise from the United States for his efforts. However, the pressure on him to disarm the powerful Iran-backed militias has not ceased. 

Al-Sudani has presented himself as a moderate who wants to focus on reconstruction and economic development. However, he will remain a representative of an Iranian-proxy legislature, rather than a leader of an independent and functional Iraqi authority, unless he is willing and able to disarm powerful militias and exclude them from power (Basnews, October 28).