Iraqi Police found the body of Akram al-Daini amidst growing spate of kidnappings in Iraq. AFP/PHOTO/AHMAD AL-RUBAYE

SAMARRA: Iraqi police on Thursday found the bound body of Akram al-Daini, brother of Sunni MP Nahida al-Daini, five days after he was kidnapped near Tikrit in central Iraq, a police officer said.

“Police found the body of Akram al-Daini bound with iron chains and with gunshot wounds on it, in the village of Al-Bujwari,” north of Baghdad, the officer said, adding that the body of an unknown woman was found near that of Daini.

A security official said that Akram al-Daini was kidnapped with his bodyguard on the road between Samarra and Tikrit on Saturday night, and that the kidnappers demanded a ransom of $1 million but the family refused to pay.

According to the police officer, Daini's bodyguard survived but was shot a number of times.

“The gunmen ordered Daini's guard to get out of the car and run, and they opened fire on him from behind and left him for dead, but he was able to go to the police” and told them about the direction the gunmen were travelling, the officer said.

Iraq has seen a wave of kidnappings as part of sectarian violence, and also targeting foreigners and wealthy Iraqis, in the years since the 2003 US-led invasion.

Nahida al-Daini is an MP from the secular, Sunni-backed Iraqiya list.

Opinion

Editorial

More pledges
Updated 25 May, 2024

More pledges

There needs to be continuity in economic policies, while development must be focused on bringing prosperity to the masses.
Pemra overreach
25 May, 2024

Pemra overreach

IT seems, at best, a misguided measure and, at worst, an attempt to abuse regulatory power to silence the media. A...
Enduring threat
25 May, 2024

Enduring threat

THE death this week of journalist Nasrullah Gadani, who succumbed to injuries after being attacked by gunmen, is yet...
IMF’s unease
Updated 24 May, 2024

IMF’s unease

It is clear that the next phase of economic stabilisation will be very tough for most of the population.
Belated recognition
24 May, 2024

Belated recognition

WITH Wednesday’s announcement by three European states that they intend to recognise Palestine as a state later...
App for GBV survivors
24 May, 2024

App for GBV survivors

GENDER-based violence is caught between two worlds: one sees it as a crime, the other as ‘convention’. The ...