Young woman in Iraq released. Israel promises to rescue hostages

Follow our liveblog on the Middle East conflict

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said early this morning that he will continue working to "recover" all hostages, following the release, on Tuesday night, of Russian-Israeli researcher Elizabeth Tsurkov, kidnapped in Iraq in March 2023.

"We will continue to fight with vigor and determination until we recover all our hostages, both dead and alive," Netanyahu said in a statement, in which he said he had held an "emotional conversation" with Tsurkov's mother and sister.

"Thanks to the work of the coordinator for hostages and missing persons, Brigadier General Gal Hirsch, which lasted for many months, and after countless efforts, we achieved their release," he added.

In turn, Israeli President Isaac Herzog also thanked everyone involved in his release, and “especially the President of the United States.”

“The end of their nightmare and their release is truly wonderful news,” Herzog said in a statement, in which he alluded to the release of the 48 hostages “who still remain cruelly held in the hell of captivity in Gaza.”

US President Donald Trump announced Tuesday the release in Iraq of a Princeton University student kidnapped by Kata'ib Hezbollah, specifying that she was already at the US Embassy in the Iraqi capital.

"I am pleased to report that Elizabeth Tsurkov (...) has just been released by Kata'ib Hizbullah and is safe in the United States Embassy in Iraq after being tortured for many months," Trump said on his Truth Social account.