After Iraq ex-MP’s killing, Lebanon asks Syria to extradite suspects

Lebanese authorities have asked Syria to hand over two Syrians suspected of involvement in the killing of former Iraqi MP Ahmed al-Alwani, who was found dead in an apartment in Beirut earlier this week. A Lebanese judicial source told the AFP news agency that preliminary findings indicate al-Alwani was strangled to death, but the perpetrators and motives remain murky.

Hailing from Ramadi in Iraq’s Sunni heartland, al-Alwani was a vocal critic of Iranian influence over Baghdad and had served more than a decade in prison after an initial death sentence on “terrorism” charges in his home country. Investigators at the Lebanese Public Prosecutor’s office had asked Damascus to arrest and hand over two Syrian nationals, the source added, who are suspected of involvement in al-Alwani’s killing.

The source said the identities of the two suspects are yet to be determined, and that a Lebanese national had been arrested and is being interrogated.