Friday, July 7, 2023

Iraq said fretting over possible Israeli strikes on pro-Iran group behind abduction

Iraq is reportedly growing concerned about the possibility that Israel will launch airstrikes on its soil against a powerful Iran-backed radical Shiite group that Jerusalem accuses of being behind the abduction of Israeli-Russian researcher Elizabeth Tsurkov in Baghdad in March, an Iraqi political source said Thursday.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office revealed on Wednesday that Tsurkov, 36, had been abducted by Kataeb Hezbollah (Brigades of the Party of God), a powerful Iraqi Shiite militia backed by Iran, and warned that Israel holds the state of Iraq “responsible for her fate and safety.”

Speaking on condition of anonymity, the source told (link to report in Arabic) the London-based, Arabic-language independent news site Elaph on Thursday that “anxiety started spreading in Iraq” following Netanyahu’s announcement and that there were growing fears about the possibility of Israel launching airstrikes on Kataeb Hezbollah targets and positions in Iraq. READ MORE