The abduction of the Israeli investigator in Iraq: A source within the security establishment in Baghdad told Israel Hayom on Thursday that according to information in his service, Elizabeth Tsurkov is alive and being held in territory controlled by the Hezbollah Brigades militia.
"This is an area that the army and police do not enter," the source said, referring to the stronghold of Iran's Shiite loyal population in the country. The security source also referred to a possible political dispute surrounding the abductee, saying that the military refrained from intervening in the case due to a "high-level political decision."
Hezbollah Brigades members training in Iraq // Photo: Arab networks
The source added that the army knew about the location of the abductee and that he had spoken with a source in the Hezbollah Brigades militia who confirmed the statement. It is important to note that Katib Hezbollah, as part of the umbrella of the pro-Iranian organization Hashd al-Shaabi, wields considerable political power in the corridors of power in Baghdad and is likely to exert its influence to prevent government intervention in the affair. It is possible that pressure has already been exerted by various international elements on the Baghdad government to act, but so far officials in the country have refrained from commenting on the case.
"Unidentified militants"
Baghdad is also in no hurry to blame the pro-Iranian Hezbollah Brigades militia or treat Elizabeth Tsurkov as Israeli, while the pro-Iranian government seeks to free it through negotiations. This was reported in the Arab media.
An Iraqi security source at the National Security Advisory in Baghdad confirmed the abduction of Israeli researcher Elizabeth Tsurkov. Speaking to the newspaper Al Arabi Al-Jadid, the source noted that "coordination is being carried out with several security forces to know which party kidnapped her." He also claimed that "the statements of the Israeli occupation authority that the abductee is Israeli stem from the fact that she holds more than one passport."
The official also confirmed that Iraqi security forces were notified on 27 March that a group of militants had removed a woman in her 30s from a car and led her at gunpoint in the Al Qarada area in central Baghdad to an unknown location. He added that there was "very little information about the hijackers, who were traveling in a white van and a black van without license plates." The Iraqi official referred to Tsurkov as a Russian kidnapped woman with an American passport who had visited the country several times.
The Hezbollah Brigades in Iraq, which holds Israeli woman Elizabeth Tsurkov, was established about 20 years ago, in 2003. The organization, created by Iran, was established to fight the remnants of Saddam Hussein's regime and Sunni forces in the country, as well as the invading American forces. In 2015, the organization boasted no less than 30,<> active fighters. Some were sent to Syria to help the Assad regime in the civil war. Alongside the increase in its power, the organization began to acquire long-range rockets.
Participated in the preparation of the article: Shahar Kleiman
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