Lebanese security forces found former Iraqi MP Ahmed Al-Alwani murdered in an apartment in Beirut, four days after his disappearance.
On Tuesday, the Iraqi News Agency (INA) confirmed that the body of former MP Ahmed Al-Alwani was found in Beirut, while Lebanese media said that Al-Alwani’s dead body was found in a residential apartment in the Tariq Al-Jadidah area in Beirut, noting that “he was strangled to death in the apartment after being lured there.”
A judicial source revealed to Asharq Al-Awsat that the security services “found an unidentified body on Monday evening, and it turned out on Tuesday afternoon that it belonged to MP Ahmed Al-Alwani, as its identity was verified after the family of the dead man filed a missing report.” He confirmed that according to surveillance cameras, Alwani “came of his own free will with two people to the building where his body was found, and went up to the apartment before losing track of him there,” noting that “he was killed by suffocation using the house’s curtain rope, which was extracted and used to kill him.”
The judicial source confirmed that the security services “uncovered the identity of three of those involved in the crime, two Syrians and a Lebanese who is currently detained pending investigation,” pointing out that “these people were the ones who brought Alwani from the airport to the hotel when he arrived in Beirut,” and it is likely that the two Syrians “left Lebanese territory after the crime was committed.” He stated that the forensic medical report indicated that the death “occurred at least three days ago.”
The Iraqi embassy in Beirut had received information from the family of former Iraqi MP Ahmed Al-Alwani that there had been no news of him for four days, his phones were switched off, and he had lost track of him even by those accompanying him.
The Public Prosecutor at the Court of Cassation, Judge Ahmed Rami Al-Haj, is following up on the initial investigations into the circumstances of Al-Alwani’s killing, taking control of the file, and directly supervising the initial investigations conducted by the Information Division of the Internal Security Forces, with the aim of uncovering the circumstances of the crime and determining the circumstances of its occurrence.
In addition, a Lebanese security source confirmed that the security services received a report about the loss of contact with Al-Alwani after he entered Lebanon. The Lebanese security services conducted searches and investigations into Al-Alwani, while “the Iraqi embassy was following up the file and communicating continuously with the highest authorities in the Iraqi capital, Baghdad,” according to what Iraqi media reported.
For its part, the Iraqi embassy in Lebanon announced that the ambassador is personally following up on the issue of the kidnapping of former Iraqi MP Ahmed Al-Alwani in Beirut, and is in direct contact with the Lebanese security services on the one hand, and with the Al-Alwani family on the other hand to find out the circumstances.
The Central News Agency quoted a Lebanese security source as saying that two Syrians and a Lebanese rented the apartment in which the former Iraqi MP was found murdered.
This afternoon (Tuesday), the Israeli army carried out a huge bombing in the town of Qantara, and Israeli artillery bombed the outskirts of the town of Mifdoun, south of Lebanon.
According to the Lebanese National News Agency, this afternoon, the Israeli army carried out a huge bombing in the town of Qantara in southern Lebanon.
This afternoon, the Al-Sawan area on the outskirts of the town of Mifidoun was subjected to intermittent Israeli artillery shelling. This afternoon, the Israeli army carried out a bombing operation in the town of Al-Tiri in southern Lebanon, according to what was reported by the German News Agency.
Two members of the health authority's ambulance teams were slightly injured, following the collapse of a building in the town of Zabqin in southern Lebanon, "while carrying out operations to retrieve the bodies of the martyrs from inside it," according to what the National News Agency announced.
This afternoon (Tuesday), Israeli artillery bombed the town of Majdal Zoun in southern Lebanon. Israeli forces carried out a sweep operation with machine guns in the town of Qantara in southern Lebanon.
This afternoon, an Israeli military drone was recorded flying over the capital, Beirut, at low altitude. Intensive flights of Israeli warplanes were also recorded in the airspace of the Nabatieh region in southern Lebanon at high altitude.
This morning, Israeli warplanes raided the town of Qantara in southern Lebanon. Israeli forces fired heavy machine guns towards the outskirts of the town of Shaqra in southern Lebanon. At dawn today, Israeli artillery shelling targeted the towns of Mansouri and Majdal Zoun in southern Lebanon.
Israel has been waging a war on Lebanon since March 2, after Hezbollah fired missiles at northern Israel. Israeli forces occupied a number of towns in southern Lebanon.
On June 20, a ceasefire was announced, after which the pace of Israeli targeting of southern Lebanon decreased.
The Israeli Parliament (the Knesset) opened its new session, on Tuesday, with sharp and continuing divisions among its main blocs, which prompted President Isaac Herzog to ask the representatives to extend their hands to unity, and to do “everything to avoid a repeat of the elections.” Herzog's call did not resonate after the arguments in the opening session showed the wide gap.
In its first move, the bloc of the Prime Minister in charge of forming the government, Gadi Eisenkot, submitted a draft law to form an official investigation committee into the “attack of October 7, 2023,” a step that the Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, rejected and evaded for 3 years, for fear of being politically convicted of failure.
On the other hand, Netanyahu repeated his accusations against the “Change” camp led by Eisenkot, and launched a fierce attack on the Arab parties (which won 19 seats in a historic achievement), accusing them of seeking to “destroy Israel.”
Herzog said at the opening of the session: “The people you represent here wish to see an outstretched hand that brings unity and hope. “I ask you to extend a hand of understanding, even between adversaries, and to look at each other with compassion.”
He added: “This Knesset must complete its days (its electoral cycle). “Do everything in your power to avoid a repeat of the elections.”
During his speech, Eisenkot pledged to establish a national emergency government, without it being clear how he would do so. All members of the Knesset arrived at the headquarters early and took the constitutional oath after a long and tense day.
Eisenkot is not waiting
The Change Bloc, headed by Eisenkot, did not wait and immediately submitted, even before the session began, 67 signatures to replace the current Speaker of the Knesset, who belongs to Likud, Amir Ohana, to be replaced by MK from the Yashar Party, Matan Kahane, in the first move to “take control” of the Knesset.
The agreements between the forces of the Eisenkot camp regarding the presidency of the Knesset and the chairmanship of other committees demonstrated the desire to oust Netanyahu’s men in the Knesset and get rid of his legacy. In a joint statement, Eisenkot, Naftali Bennett, Yair Golan, Avigdor Lieberman, and Yair Lapid announced that an agreement had been reached regarding the speaker of the Knesset and the distribution of a number of parliamentary positions during the period assigned to form the government.
Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper said that everyone was determining the scope of their influence in the Knesset. According to the newspaper, Eisenkot and his party won the presidency of the Knesset, Benet’s party won the Finance Committee, and Lieberman took control of the Foreign Affairs and Security Committee in light of his rapprochement with the Haredim, while the “Democrats” want to take the lead in the legislative campaign.
In addition to the draft law to investigate the failures of the “Seventh of October” attack, the camp responsible for forming the government presented a set of draft laws that include “the comprehensive cancellation of the controversial judicial amendments proposed by the Netanyahu government, which caused unprecedented Israeli demonstrations.”
Yedioth said that it is still unclear whether the leaders of the “Change” bloc will succeed in forming the government, but it is certain that their plan to “control” the Knesset will be implemented.
Attack on Arabs
Knesset Speaker Ohana did not announce when he would leave his position, but he attacked Kahane and could only say that he “depends on Arab votes.” He also attacked the Arab representatives in the Knesset, and the head of the “Unified Arab List” Mansour Abbas (he won 7 seats).
Ohana said: “For the sake of the future of Zionism, we must not cooperate with those who promote false conspiracies and call for the invasion of the land of the Jewish people.” Following Ohana's statements, a skirmish occurred.
Immediately after Ohana's incitement, the extremist Minister of National Security, Itamar Ben Gvir, entered and attacked the Joint Arab List (which won 12 seats), and interrupted its leader, Youssef Jabareen, as he was taking the oath in the Knesset, saying: “Who are you swearing off to?” Is it for (Hamas)?”... Joint List members responded: “Supporter of terrorism.”
In a shot that caught the attention of the Israeli media, Unified President Mansour Abbas did not leave the Knesset hall when the singing of the “Israeli National Anthem” began, unlike the Arab members, and he stood with the audience during its chanting.
The Arab parties in Israel are represented by two blocs: the “Joint Arab List” and the “Unified List,” and together they won 19 seats in an unprecedented achievement. While the “joint” Arab nationalist and leftist trends themselves reject involvement in an Israeli government and adopt a more stringent discourse against the authorities, Abbas participated in 2021 in a government alliance with Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid.
Although Abbas remained in the hall, he was not spared another attack led by Netanyahu later against the Arabs. Netanyahu said in his speech before the new Knesset that a national unity government must be formed to confront all threats, including a nuclear Iran. He added: Any government that relies on “terrorist supporters and haters of Israel” will fail.
Netanyahu launched a fierce attack on the two Arab parties, accusing them of seeking to destroy Israel. “The only difference is that they disagree about what kind of state should be established here on the ruins of the Jewish state,” he claimed.
Back to questioning the elections
Netanyahu returned to questioning the election results, and demanded an investigation into external influence that marred their course, according to his claim. The head of the “Together” Party, Naftali Bennett, responded sharply to Netanyahu: “What about the October 7 investigations?” Ben Gvir then shouted in Bennett’s face: “Do you want to sit with the Joint Party?” The prime minister's wife, Sara Netanyahu, also intervened in the discussion and shouted at Bennett.
Eisenkot responded, saying: “I listened to the outgoing Prime Minister’s speech, which was characterized by delusion, division, hatred and shame, and I became increasingly convinced that he is not qualified to remain in office even for one more minute. We must act urgently to form a national emergency government. His continued rule divides Israel and puts its security at risk.”
