Iraq opens an investigation into the kidnapping of a missing Israeli-Russian academic

By ABDULRAHMAN ZEYAD
Associated Press

BAGHDAD (AP) — An Iraqi government spokesman says Baghdad has opened an investigation into the case of a dual Israeli-Russian academic who has been missing in Iraq since last March. The spokesman’s comments on Friday were the first official Iraqi statements since Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said Wednesday that Elizabeth Tsurkov is still alive “and we hold Iraq responsible for her safety and well-being.” Netanyahu said Tsurkov is being held by the Shiite group Kataeb Hezbollah, or Hezbollah Brigades, a powerful Iran-backed group. Tsurkov, who is pursuing a doctorate at Princeton University, is a fellow at the Washington-based think tank New Lines Institute.