Freed researcher Elizabeth Tsurkov breaks silence
Shafaq News – Middle East
Elizabeth Tsurkov, the Israeli-Russian researcher freed in Iraq last month, published her first posts on X on Friday, thanking those who helped secure her release after more than two years in captivity.
In three messages — written in English, Arabic, and Hebrew — the account attributed to her struck different notes for each audience. In English, she expressed gratitude to American officials, singling out US President Donald Trump for what she called the “decisive action that brought me home without anything given in return.”
Finally, blessedly, free after 903 days in captivity. Thank you President @realDonaldTrump, for the decisive action that brought me home without anything given in return to the kidnappers, Kataeb Hezbollah.I am deeply grateful to Special Envoy for Hostage Response @aboehler,…
— Elizabeth Tsurkov (@Elizrael) October 3, 2025
In Arabic, however, she described survival as an act of divine mercy, saying “the Most Merciful preserved me even in the depths of hell under the torture of Kataib al-Scum [the Iranian-backed Kataib Hezbollah],” using unusually harsh language toward her captors.
شكرًا لكل الذين عملوا على الإفراج عني طوال سنوات اختطافي. شكرًا لكل أصدقائي حول العالم الذين ناشدوا من أجل حريتي ووصلوا من أجلي. المجيب الرحمٰن حفظني حتى في قعر جهنم تحت تعذيب كتائب الحثالة، وأنقذني من أيدي هؤلاء القوم الفاسقين.
— Elizabeth Tsurkov (@Elizrael) October 3, 2025
Her Hebrew post, by contrast, focused on family and recovery, thanking medical staff for “dedicated treatment” and expressing hope that “all hostages and their families” would one day share her feeling of freedom.
מודה מעומק ליבי למנהלת החטופים ולכל הגורמים שפעלו בנחישות ובמסירות למען שחרורי. תודה מיוחדת לצוותים הרפואיים המדהימים על הטיפול המסור. תודה לכל מי שפעל למען שחרורי מהשבי. אין לי מילים לתאר את תחושת האושר להיות חופשיה ועם משפחתי. לכל החטופים ולמשפחותיהם מגיע לחוות את התחושה הזו.
— Elizabeth Tsurkov (@Elizrael) October 3, 2025
Shafaq News could not independently verify the authenticity of the account.
Iraq announced on September 9 that Tsurkov had been released and handed over to the US Embassy in Baghdad, more than two years after she was abducted. Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani said the operation followed months of security work and vowed to stop armed groups from “undermining Iraq’s sovereignty.” Kataib Hezbollah later issued a statement implicitly acknowledging responsibility for the kidnapping, saying her release had spared Iraq “a potential strike.”
