Friends and colleagues ‘appalled’ by lies about Princeton doctoral student kidnapped in Iraq

Those who know Elizabeth Tsurkov came to her defence after some of her tweets from more than 10 years ago circulated, fuelling claims that she is a spy

Elizabeth Tsurkov was kidnapped in Baghdad, her family confirmed. (Foreign Policy Research Institute)

A number of people close to missing Princeton doctoral student, Elizabeth Tsurkov, who was reportedly kidnapped in Iraq, are speaking out about the “lies” being spread about her.

Friends and colleagues defended Ms Tsurkov after some of her tweets from more than 10 years ago circulated. In one tweet, she said she “was in intelligence” and in another, she wrote she was an “active reserve duty IDF soldier,” fuelling theories that she worked as a spy.

Those who actually know the Princeton doctoral student have said that the allegations are “completely ridiculous and offensive,” citing Ms Tsurkov’s criticism of Israel’s government as well as outspoken support for Palestinian rights. Both of those stances are prevalent across her Twitter profile.

Gary Spedding, who met Ms Tsurkov in 2012 and has worked with her on a number of human rights projects in support of Palestinian refugees, came to her defence. “I am disgusted and appalled by those attacking Elizabeth and using this as an opportunity to spread complete lies about her,” Mr Spedding told The Daily Beast.

“The people trying to defame her and smear her are aware of how precarious her situation is… It’s absolutely horrific, infuriating. They are disgusting cowards, and they really know exactly what it is they’re doing. They seem gleeful about it and it’s shameful, absolutely shameful,” he continued.

“It’s absolutely horrifying. I was truly panicked and very upset that this is now a massive news piece. It’s such a horrific situation. She’s not just got detractors who are criticizing her for being a potential spy: she’s also got right-wing Israelis who despise the fact that she supports Palestinian rights calling her a traitor, and saying the Israeli government shouldn’t bother helping her. It’s all absolutely disgraceful,” Mr Spedding added.

An author and Middle East expert familiar with Ms Tsurkov and her work, Robin Yassin-Kassab, also discussed her positions toward the Israeli government.

“She was somebody who openly criticized Israeli policy… and she was working for justice and equality throughout the region. Ultimately, people like her are a benefit to the region and to the people in it,” Mr Yassin-Kassab told The Daily Beast. He also added that he was “appalled” by the online criticism of the kidnapped Princeton student.

“The people who’ve kidnapped her are monsters who’ve committed huge crimes against the Arab peoples of Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Lebanon. I hope that we’re all free of them, and I hope that we can get to a situation where people are not targeted just because of their ethnic or national or religious origin,” he continued.

A journalist, who spoke to The Daily Beast on the condition of anonymity, described Ms Tsurkov as a “dear friend” and called the spy allegations “seriously repugnant and inhumane.”

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wrote in a statement last week that Ms Tsurkov had been kidnapped in Iraq while doing field work in the country, and “is being held by the Shiite militia Kataib Hezbollah.”

“Elizabeth Tsurkov is still alive and we hold Iraq responsible for her safety and well-being,” Mr Netanyahu wrote. Ms Tsurkov is an Israeli-Russian dual citizen, the Israeli prime minister added.

The Iraqi government announced it opened an investigation into Ms Tsurkov’s kidnapping, a government spokesperson said on Friday.