Israeli researcher Elizabeth Tsurkov has spoken publicly for the first time about her ordeal during two and a half years of captivity in Iraq. Taken hostage in March 2023 by a pro-Iranian Iraqi group, Tsurkov endured severe physical and psychological torture after her captors discovered her Israeli citizenship. She described being subjected to electrocutions, beatings, whippings, sexual abuse, and unique regional torture methods, including being hung from the ceiling and a technique known as 'the scorpion' that often led to shoulder dislocation. Tsurkov recounted inventing false confessions in hopes of stopping the abuse, but her captors continued to demand more. After 100 days of torture, she was moved to another location where the abuse ceased.