Former Iraqi lawmaker Ahmed al-Alwani found dead in Beirut

Former Iraqi lawmaker Ahmed al-Alwani has been found dead in an apartment in the Lebanese capital, Beirut, according to a security source, prompting a “murder” investigation.

The source, who spoke to Al Jazeera on Tuesday, did not disclose how al-Alwani had died.

The official National News Agency described al-Awani’s death as a “murder” and said authorities in Lebanon have launched an investigation.

It said al-Alwani’s body was found in an apartment in the Tariq Al-Jadeeda neighbourhood of Beirut on Monday.

According to NNA, Judge Ahmed Rami al-Hajj will oversee the investigation by Lebanon’s Internal Security Forces.

In a statement on X, al-Alwani’s office called the former lawmaker’s death an “assassination” and a “treacherous crime”.

It called for an investigation and accountability for the perpetrators.

“This is not a passing incident to be brushed aside with condolences and condemnation,” it said. “It is a crime that demands a firm official response and a transparent investigation that reveals who planned it, who carried it out and who else was involved. Whoever is behind it, no one is above accountability.”

A Lebanese judicial source, meanwhile, told the AFP news agency that preliminary findings indicate al-Alwani was strangled to death and that a Lebanese national suspected of involvement has been arrested.

The official said authorities are looking for two Syrian suspects still at large. He added that the suspects had taken al-Alwani from the airport to his hotel when he arrived in Beirut last week.

A Sunni politician, al-Alwani formerly represented the western province of Anbar in Iraq’s parliament. He rose to prominence during the protests of 2012 and 2013 against the Shia-led government of then-Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.

He was arrested in December 2013 during a security raid on his home in Ramadi, during which his brother and several others were killed.

Al-Alwani was sentenced to death in 2014 on “terrorism” charges, but was released in April 2025 under Iraq’s General Amnesty Law after more than a decade in detention.

Iraq’s Ambassador to Lebanon Mohammed Reda al-Husseini said the embassy was following the case closely.

He said the embassy is awaiting the final report from the Lebanese security agencies to “disclose the circumstances of the crime”.