An Israeli-Russian academic thought to have gone missing in Baghdad in March is alive and being held in Iraq by Shiite group Kataeb Hezbollah, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said on Wednesday.
A statement named the woman as Elisabeth Tsurkov. It said she had gone to Iraq for research on behalf of Princeton University in the US. There were no immediate details on her condition.
Ms Tsurkov entered Iraq on her Russian passport, the statement read.
"Elisabeth Tsurkov is still alive and we see Iraq as responsible for her fate and well-being," the statement said. The situation is being handled by the relevant bodies in Israel, it added.
Ms Tsurkov's mother, Irena, said they lost contact two months ago. "From what I had known ... she was in Turkey, working on her research for Princeton. I didn't even know she was in Iraq," she told N12 News.
Israeli citizens are forbidden from travelling to Iraq. Kataeb Hezbollah is one of the most powerful Iran-backed militia groups there.
Ms Tsurkov's disappearance was not widely reported.
According to New Lines magazine, a publication of the Newlines Institute for Strategy and Policy, a think tank in Washington where Ms Tsurkov was a fellow, she was abducted in the Iraqi capital in late March. The last post on her Twitter account was on March 21.
Ms Tsurkov's research focused on the Levant and particularly the Syrian civil war, her website says.
New Lines said her kidnapping was first reported by Michael Rubin, an American analyst whose focus is Iraq and Iran. Mr Rubin said in June that Ms Tsurkov had been detained by militias after being warned not to return to Iraq, where she had previously conducted field research in Mosul and the Kurdistan region.
His reference to her kidnapping links to a March 29 story in The New Arab, which incorrectly reports the kidnapping of a Russian-American academic in the Karrada neighbourhood of Baghdad.
"Investigations are continuing with the kidnapping, and under the supervision of the office of Prime Minister Muhammad Shia Al Sudani, in order to uncover the entire network involved in the kidnapping," an Iraqi security force statement said at the time.
New Lines stressed that Ms Tsurkov was a passionate critic of Israel, while also aiming strong criticism at Iran's allies in the Middle East. The publication said that her criticism of all countries that could secure her release, including Russia, could complicate efforts to secure her safety.
In May last year, Iraq passed a law criminalising any ties with Israel. The law also applied to foreigners working in Iraq, potentially putting Ms Tsurkov at risk, even before considering the presence of Iran-backed militias such as Kataib Hezbollah.
The group is accused of kidnapping and killing hundreds of Iraqis, sometimes with no announced justification for its actions. In January, the group was accused of kidnapping an Iraqi environmentalist, reportedly because he had criticised the construction of dams in Iran on social media.
New Lines stressed that Ms Tsurkov's work was purely academic in nature, focused heavily on political science.
Agencies contributed to this report.
Islamophobia definition
A widely accepted definition was made by the All Party Parliamentary Group on British Muslims in 2019: “Islamophobia is rooted in racism and is a type of racism that targets expressions of Muslimness or perceived Muslimness.” It further defines it as “inciting hatred or violence against Muslims”.
UAE SQUAD
Ahmed Raza (Captain), Rohan Mustafa, Jonathan Figy, CP Rizwan, Junaid Siddique, Mohammad Usman, Basil Hameed, Zawar Farid, Vriitya Aravind (WK), Waheed Ahmed, Karthik Meiyappan, Zahoor Khan, Darius D'Silva, Chirag Suri
Ten tax points to be aware of in 2026
1. Domestic VAT refund amendments: request your refund within five years
If a business does not apply for the refund on time, they lose their credit.
2. E-invoicing in the UAE
Businesses should continue preparing for the implementation of e-invoicing in the UAE, with 2026 a preparation and transition period ahead of phased mandatory adoption.
3. More tax audits
Tax authorities are increasingly using data already available across multiple filings to identify audit risks.
4. More beneficial VAT and excise tax penalty regime
Tax disputes are expected to become more frequent and more structured, with clearer administrative objection and appeal processes. The UAE has adopted a new penalty regime for VAT and excise disputes, which now mirrors the penalty regime for corporate tax.
5. Greater emphasis on statutory audit
There is a greater need for the accuracy of financial statements. The International Financial Reporting Standards standards need to be strictly adhered to and, as a result, the quality of the audits will need to increase.
6. Further transfer pricing enforcement
Transfer pricing enforcement, which refers to the practice of establishing prices for internal transactions between related entities, is expected to broaden in scope. The UAE will shortly open the possibility to negotiate advance pricing agreements, or essentially rulings for transfer pricing purposes.
7. Limited time periods for audits
Recent amendments also introduce a default five-year limitation period for tax audits and assessments, subject to specific statutory exceptions. While the standard audit and assessment period is five years, this may be extended to up to 15 years in cases involving fraud or tax evasion.
8. Pillar 2 implementation
Many multinational groups will begin to feel the practical effect of the Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax (DMTT), the UAE's implementation of the OECD’s global minimum tax under Pillar 2. While the rules apply for financial years starting on or after January 1, 2025, it is 2026 that marks the transition to an operational phase.
9. Reduced compliance obligations for imported goods and services
Businesses that apply the reverse-charge mechanism for VAT purposes in the UAE may benefit from reduced compliance obligations.
10. Substance and CbC reporting focus
Tax authorities are expected to continue strengthening the enforcement of economic substance and Country-by-Country (CbC) reporting frameworks. In the UAE, these regimes are increasingly being used as risk-assessment tools, providing tax authorities with a comprehensive view of multinational groups’ global footprints and enabling them to assess whether profits are aligned with real economic activity.
Contributed by Thomas Vanhee and Hend Rashwan, Aurifer
The years Ramadan fell in May
