Iraqi troops detained a Sunni lawmaker sought on terrorism charges today and killed his brother and five of his guards after they opened fire on the arresting officers.
The incident, which will likely to add to the nation's sectarian tensions, also left one Iraqi soldier dead.
The arrested lawmaker, Ahmed al-Alwani, has been prominent among the organisers of Sunni protests against Iraq's Shiite-led government over the past year. He is sought on terrorism charges for inciting violence against Shiites who came to power after the 2003 US-led invasion that ended Saddam Hussein's Sunni-led regime.
As military and security forces arrived at his home at dawn today in the western city of Ramadi, al-Alwani's guards and tribesmen opened fire, prompting a shootout that lasted nearly an hour, a police officer said. A spokesman of Iraq's counter-terrorism forces, Sameer al-Showaili, told the state TV that al-Alwani surrendered after he ran out of ammunition.
Along with those killed on the scene - al-Alwani's brother, five guards and a soldier - 12 guards and five soldiers were also wounded in the shooting. Six other guards were arrested, the officer said. A medical official confirmed the casualty figures.
Al-Alwani's parliamentary bloc, Iraqiya, demanded his release and denounced the arrest as politically-motivated, saying it was intended to benefit the bloc's rivals in next year's national elections.
"The arrest of al-Alwani and the assassination of his brother are part of a campaign for the elections," said Sunni lawmaker, Salman al-Jumaili, who heads the bloc in the parliament. He said the Shiite-led government is "agitating sectarian tension regardless of the consequences on the future of the country."
Since last December, Iraq's Sunni minority has been staging protests against what they claim is second-class treatment at the hands of the Shiite majority. The protests have mostly focused around the western Anbar province and other Sunni areas to the north. The Sunnis have also been demanding an end to some laws they believe unfairly target them.
Al-Alwani's arrest comes a year after several bodyguards of Finance Minister Rafia al-Issawi, a Sunni, were arrested in a terrorism-related sweep, and two years after authorities issued an arrest warrant against Sunni Vice President Tariq al-Hashemi, also on terrorism charges.
