Maybe it didn’t feel good to say it, Save Jerseyans, but Governor Phil Murphy thanked President Donald Trump on Tuesday following the release of a Princeton University student who was being held by Hezbollah.
“Incredibly grateful for the release of Princeton University graduate student Elizabeth Tsurkov, who was kidnapped in Iraq two years ago,” Murphy posted on X. “Thank you President Trump and Special Envoy for Hostage Response Adam Boehler for your tireless work securing her release.”
Even Princeton University was forced to offer a hearty thanks.
“The release of Princeton graduate student Elizabeth Tsurkov brings relief and joy to the University community, and we celebrate that she will be reunited with her family,” Princeton President Christopher L. Eisgruber offered in a statement. “We thank President Trump for securing Elizabeth’s release. We are also grateful to those who worked tirelessly to bring an end to her terrible ordeal, including her family, friends and advocates.”
A doctoral students, Tsurkov had been kidnapped from a cafe during an attempt to perform field research in Iraq.
“My entire family is incredibly happy. We cannot wait to see Elizabeth and give her all the love we have been waiting to share for 903 days,” Emma Tsurkov, the former captive’s sister, wrote in her own post. “We are so thankful to President Trump and his Special Envoy, Adam Boehler. If Adam had not made my sister’s return his personal mission, I do not know where we would be. We also want to thank Josh Harris and his team at the US Embassy in Baghdad for the support they provided to our sister and the team at the nonprofit Global Reach who advocated relentlessly for my sister’s safe return.”
