Dr. Ronen Zeidel, an expert on Iraq, is addressing the Haredi sector and warning against further attempts to visit the country, amid concerns of kidnapping by terrorist elements.
He issued his warning following a report broadcast on Channel 14 about journalist Yitzhak Horowitz’s visit to Iranian militia strongholds in Baghdad and to Shiite holy cities. In an interview with the channel, Horowitz described his arrest in Kuwait on suspicion of espionage, as well as direct threats against Israel that he said he heard in Karbala.
“Perhaps my words were not understood, or perhaps I was not clear: Iraq is a very dangerous place, especially for Israelis," Zeidel wrote in a Facebook post.
According to him, he has been receiving videos from Iraq indicating that hostile actors are actively working to identify Israelis entering the country. He also noted that a few weeks ago, American journalist Shelley Kittleson was kidnapped in central Baghdad after ignoring warnings that had been given to her and was eventually released.
In March 2023, Middle East researcher Elizabeth Tsurkov was kidnapped in Baghdad by Hezbollah Brigades and was released in September 2025 following American intervention.