Ayad Allawi
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Ayad Allawi (; also spelled Iyad or Eyad; born 31 May 1944) is an Iraqi-British politician and neurologist. He served as the
vice president of Iraq Iraq has had three vice presidents or deputy presidents serving concurrently. The office of Vice President was historically largely ceremonial but prestigious. In post-war Iraq, the Constitution of Iraq, in its "Transitional Guidelines," crea ...
from 2014 to 2015 and 2016 to 2018. Previously he was interim
prime minister of Iraq The prime minister of the Republic of Iraq is the head of government of Iraq and the commander-in-chief of the Iraqi Armed Forces. On 27 October 2022, Mohammed Shia' Al Sudani became the incumbent prime minister. History The prime minist ...
from 2004 to 2005 and the president of the Governing Council of Iraq (38th
prime minister of Iraq The prime minister of the Republic of Iraq is the head of government of Iraq and the commander-in-chief of the Iraqi Armed Forces. On 27 October 2022, Mohammed Shia' Al Sudani became the incumbent prime minister. History The prime minist ...
) in 2003. A prominent Iraqi
political activist A political movement is a collective attempt by a group of people to change government policy or social values. Political movements are usually in opposition to an element of the status quo, and are often associated with a certain ideology. Some ...
who lived in exile for almost 30 years, Allawi, a
Shia Shia Islam is the second-largest branch of Islam. It holds that Muhammad designated Ali ibn Abi Talib () as both his political successor (caliph) and as the spiritual leader of the Muslim community (imam). However, his right is understood ...
Muslim, became a member of the Iraq Interim Governing Council, which was established by U.S.-led coalition authorities following the 2003 invasion of Iraq. He became Iraq's first
head of government In the Executive (government), executive branch, the head of government is the highest or the second-highest official of a sovereign state, a federated state, or a self-governing colony, autonomous region, or other government who often presid ...
since
Saddam Hussein Saddam Hussein (28 April 1937 – 30 December 2006) was an Iraqi politician and revolutionary who served as the fifth president of Iraq from 1979 until Saddam Hussein statue destruction, his overthrow in 2003 during the 2003 invasion of Ira ...
when the council dissolved on 1 June 2004, and named him prime minister of the
Iraqi Interim Government The Iraqi Interim Government was created by the United States and its coalition allies as a caretaker government to govern Iraq until the drafting of the new constitution following the National Assembly election conducted on January 30, 2005 ...
. His term as prime minister ended on 7 April 2005, after the selection of
Islamic Dawa Party The Islamic Dawa Party () is an Iraqi Shia Islamist political movement that was formed in 1957 by seminarians in Najaf, Iraq, and later formed branches in Lebanon and Kuwait. The Party backed the Iranian Revolution and also Ayatollah Ruholla ...
leader
Ibrahim al-Jaafari Ibrahim Abdul Karim al-Eshaiker (; born 25 March 1947), better known as Ibrahim al-Jaafari, is an Iraqi politician who was Prime Minister of Iraq in the Iraqi Transitional Government from 2005 to 2006, following the January 2005 Iraqi parliamenta ...
by the newly elected transitional Iraqi National Assembly. A former
Ba'athist Ba'athism, also spelled Baathism, is an Arab nationalist ideology which advocates the establishment of a unified Arab state through the rule of a Ba'athist vanguard party operating under a revolutionary socialist framework. The ideology ...
, Allawi helped found the
Iraqi National Accord The Iraqi National Accord (INA; Arabic: الوفاق الوطني العراقي; ''Al-Wifaq Al-Watani Al-'Iraqi''), colloquially known in Iraq as Wifaq, is an Iraqi political party founded by Ayad Allawi, Tahsin Muallah and Salah Omar al-Ali in ...
, which today is an active political party. In the lead up to the 2003 invasion of Iraq, the INA provided intelligence about alleged weapons of mass destruction to
MI6 The Secret Intelligence Service (SIS), commonly known as MI6 ( Military Intelligence, Section 6), is the foreign intelligence service of the United Kingdom, tasked mainly with the covert overseas collection and analysis of human intelligenc ...
. Allawi has lived about half of his life in the UK. His wife and children still live in the UK for their security. He survived assassination attempts in 1978, in 2004, and on 20 April 2005.


Allawi's early life

Allawi was born in 1944 to a prominent
Shiite Shia Islam is the second-largest branch of Islam. It holds that Muhammad designated Ali ibn Abi Talib () as both his political successor (caliph) and as the spiritual leader of the Muslim community (imam). However, his right is understood ...
merchant family; his grandfather helped to negotiate Iraq's independence from
Britain Britain most often refers to: * Great Britain, a large island comprising the countries of England, Scotland and Wales * The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, a sovereign state in Europe comprising Great Britain and the north-eas ...
and his father was an Iraqi Member of Parliament. He became involved in
Ba'athism Ba'athism, also spelled Baathism, is an Arab nationalist ideology which advocates the establishment of a unified Arab state through the rule of a Ba'athist vanguard party operating under a revolutionary socialist framework. The ideology i ...
at a young age and organized against the government of Abdul Karim Qassim. He joined the
Ba'ath Party The Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party ( ' ), also known simply as Bath Party (), was a political party founded in Syria by Michel Aflaq, Salah al-Din al-Bitar, and associates of Zaki al-Arsuzi. The party espoused Ba'athism, which is an ideology ...
in 1961 while he studied at medical school in
Baghdad Baghdad ( or ; , ) is the capital and List of largest cities of Iraq, largest city of Iraq, located along the Tigris in the central part of the country. With a population exceeding 7 million, it ranks among the List of largest cities in the A ...
at
Baghdad University The University of Baghdad (UOB) (, also known as Baghdad University) is a public research university in Baghdad Baghdad ( or ; , ) is the capital and List of largest cities of Iraq, largest city of Iraq, located along the Tigris in the ...
. Previously, he had attended high school and college at
Baghdad College Baghdad College () is an elite high school for boys aged 11 to 18 in Baghdad, Iraq. It was initially a Catholic school founded by and operated by American Jesuits from Boston. The 1969 Iraqi government nationalization and expulsion of Jesuit tea ...
, a
Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...
,
Jesuit The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...
high school and college. He obtained his master's degree at
University College London University College London (Trade name, branded as UCL) is a Public university, public research university in London, England. It is a Member institutions of the University of London, member institution of the Federal university, federal Uni ...
and performed a residency at
Guy's Hospital Guy's Hospital is an NHS hospital founded by philanthropist Thomas Guy in 1721, located in the borough of Southwark in central London. It is part of Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust and one of the institutions that comprise the Kin ...
. Allawi has three children, one of them, Hamza, studies in a school in
Surrey Surrey () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Greater London to the northeast, Kent to the east, East Sussex, East and West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire and Berkshire to the wes ...
. Allawi is related to
Ahmed Chalabi Ahmed Abdel Hadi Chalabi (; 30 October 1945 – 3 November 2015) was an Iraqi dissident politician, convicted fraudster and founder of the Iraqi National Congress (INC) who served as the President of the Governing Council of Iraq ( 37th ...
, another prominent former exile who died in 2015, through Chalabi's sister. Former minister of trade Ali Allawi is Chalabi's sister's son as well as Ayad Allawi's cousin. The relationship between Chalabi and Allawi had been described as alternating between rivals and allies. In addition, Nouri Badran, interim Minister of Interior, is married to Iyad Allawi's sister. He is also a cousin of Mohammed Tawfiq Allawi. Allawi gained British citizenship by the 1980s.


Early political career

In 1971, he moved to London due to increasing differences with the Ba'ath Party and in order to continue his medical education. He resigned from the Ba'ath party in 1976, "having decided that Saddam was exerting too much control over it," and reportedly established ties with
MI6 The Secret Intelligence Service (SIS), commonly known as MI6 ( Military Intelligence, Section 6), is the foreign intelligence service of the United Kingdom, tasked mainly with the covert overseas collection and analysis of human intelligenc ...
. Allawi himself states that he remained active in the international Ba'athist movement, but had no ties to the Ba'ath Party's Iraqi Regional Branch. At first Saddam, then Iraq's vice president, pressured Allawi, who was in contact with senior military and party officers that were increasingly critical of Saddam, to rejoin the Ba'ath Party. In 1978, friends told Allawi that his name was on a liquidation list. In February 1978 Allawi was awoken in bed one night by an intruder in his home in
Kingston upon Thames Kingston upon Thames, colloquially known as Kingston, is a town in the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames, south-west London, England. It is situated on the River Thames, south-west of Charing Cross. It is an ancient market town, notable as ...
, who proceeded to attack him with an axe. The intruder left, convinced that Allawi was dead as he lay in a pool of blood. He survived the attempted murder, and spent the next year in hospital recovering from his injuries. His first wife, Atour, was also wounded in the attack. Allawi accused the Iraqi government of orchestrating the attack, without providing solid evidence. He separated with his wife after mutual agreement.


The Iraqi National Accord

While still recovering in hospital from the attack, Allawi started organising an opposition network to work against the government of Saddam Hussein. Through the 1980s he built this network, recruiting Iraqis while traveling as a businessman and for the
UNDP The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is a United Nations agency tasked with helping countries eliminate poverty and achieve sustainable economic growth and human development. The UNDP emphasizes on developing local capacity towar ...
. In December 1990, Allawi announced the existence of the
Iraqi National Accord The Iraqi National Accord (INA; Arabic: الوفاق الوطني العراقي; ''Al-Wifaq Al-Watani Al-'Iraqi''), colloquially known in Iraq as Wifaq, is an Iraqi political party founded by Ayad Allawi, Tahsin Muallah and Salah Omar al-Ali in ...
(INA). Six years later, using disillusioned Ba'athists in the military and government, it mounted an unsuccessful coup in Baghdad. One of Allawi's allies in the INA was Salah Omar Al-Ali, a former member of the
Iraqi Revolutionary Command Council The Revolutionary Command Council () was the ultimate decision-making body in Ba'athist Iraq. Established after the 17 July Revolution, 1968 Iraqi coup, It exercised both executive power, executive and legislative authority in the country, wit ...
and ambassador to the
United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...
. The INA received open backing from the UK,
Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...
,
Jordan Jordan, officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, is a country in the Southern Levant region of West Asia. Jordan is bordered by Syria to the north, Iraq to the east, Saudi Arabia to the south, and Israel and the occupied Palestinian ter ...
,
Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in West Asia. Located in the centre of the Middle East, it covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula and has a land area of about , making it the List of Asian countries ...
,
Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...
and the
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
. The group consisted mainly of former military personnel who had defected from
Saddam Hussein Saddam Hussein (28 April 1937 – 30 December 2006) was an Iraqi politician and revolutionary who served as the fifth president of Iraq from 1979 until Saddam Hussein statue destruction, his overthrow in 2003 during the 2003 invasion of Ira ...
's Iraq to instigate a military coup. Allawi established links and worked with the
CIA The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA; ) is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States tasked with advancing national security through collecting and analyzing intelligence from around the world and ...
in 1992 as a counterpoint to Chalabi, and because of the INA's links in the Ba'athist establishment. It is alleged Allawi's INA organised attacks in Iraq. This campaign never posed a threat to Saddam Hussein's rule, but was designed to test INA's capability to effect
regime change Regime change is the partly forcible or coercive replacement of one government regime with another. Regime change may replace all or part of the state's most critical leadership system, administrative apparatus, or bureaucracy. Regime change may ...
. Though Saddam's government claimed the attacks have caused up to 100 civilian deaths there are no true records of these statistics to date. A military coup was planned for 1996, in which Iraqi generals were to lead their units against Baghdad and remove Saddam Hussein. The CIA supported the plot, code-named DBACHILLES, and added Iraqi officers that were not part of INA. The plan ended in disaster as it had been infiltrated by agents loyal to Saddam. US support was also questionable - requests by the CIA station chief in
Amman Amman ( , ; , ) is the capital and the largest city of Jordan, and the country's economic, political, and cultural center. With a population of four million as of 2021, Amman is Jordan's primate city and is the largest city in the Levant ...
for American air support were refused by the Clinton administration. Many participants were executed. Lands and factories belonging to the Allawi family were confiscated. Even their graveyard in
Najaf Najaf is the capital city of the Najaf Governorate in central Iraq, about 160 km (99 mi) south of Baghdad. Its estimated population in 2024 is about 1.41 million people. It is widely considered amongst the holiest cities of Shia Islam an ...
was seized, although it was later returned. According to Allawi, his family lost $250M worth of assets. US support for INA continued, receiving $6 million in covert aid in 1996 and $5 million in 1995 (according to books by David Wurmser as well as
Andrew Andrew is the English form of the given name, common in many countries. The word is derived from the , ''Andreas'', itself related to ''aner/andros'', "man" (as opposed to "woman"), thus meaning "manly" and, as consequence, "brave", "strong", "c ...
and
Patrick Cockburn Patrick Oliver Cockburn ( ; born 5 March 1950) is a journalist who has been a Middle East correspondent for the ''Financial Times'' since 1979 and, from 1990, ''The Independent''. He has also worked as a correspondent in Moscow and Washington ...
). The INA channelled the report from an Iraqi officer claiming that Iraq could deploy its supposed
weapons of mass destruction A weapon of mass destruction (WMD) is a Biological agent, biological, chemical weapon, chemical, Radiological weapon, radiological, nuclear weapon, nuclear, or any other weapon that can kill or significantly harm many people or cause great dam ...
within "45 minutes" to
British Intelligence The Government of the United Kingdom maintains several intelligence agencies that deal with secret intelligence. These agencies are responsible for collecting, analysing and exploiting foreign and domestic intelligence, providing military intell ...
. This claim featured prominently in the '' September Dossier'' which the
British government His Majesty's Government, abbreviated to HM Government or otherwise UK Government, is the central government, central executive authority of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
released in 2002 to gain public support for the Iraq invasion. In the aftermath of the war, the "45 minute claim" was also at the heart of the confrontation between the British government and the
BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
, and the death of David Kelly later examined by Lord Hutton. Giving evidence to the
Hutton Inquiry The Hutton Inquiry was a 2003 judicial inquiry in the UK chaired by Brian Hutton, Baron Hutton, Lord Hutton, who was appointed by the Labour Party (UK), Labour government to investigate the controversial circumstances surrounding the death of Dav ...
, the head of MI6
Richard Dearlove Sir Richard Billing Dearlove (born 23 January 1945) is a retired British intelligence officer who was head of the British Secret Intelligence Service (MI6), a role known informally as "C", from 1999 until 6 May 2004. He was head of MI6 during ...
suggested that the claim related to battlefield weapons rather than weapons of mass destruction.


Post-Saddam

Shortly after the fall of Saddam Hussein in 2003, the
Coalition Provisional Authority The Coalition Provisional Authority (; , CPA) was a Provisional government, transitional government of Iraq established following the 2003 invasion of Iraq, invasion of the country on 19 March 2003 by Multi-National Force – Iraq, U.S.-led Co ...
(the "CPA") was established by the occupying forces in order to administer the country until sovereignty could be restored. The CPA decided to establish a grouping of senior Iraqi politicians to carry out some administrative responsibilities, with a view to giving the occupation a more "Iraqi face". This grouping was referred to as the Governing Council, and was made up of 25 Iraqis that were appointed by the CPA. Allawi was one of those selected to serve on the Governing Council, and held the position of Minister of Defence (although his real responsibilities in that regard were limited considering Iraq remained under occupation). He held the rotating
presidency A presidency is an administration or the executive, the collective administrative and governmental entity that exists around an office of president of a state or nation. Although often the executive branch of government, and often personified b ...
of the interim governing council during October 2003. In April 2004, Allawi reportedly resigned as head of the IGC security committee over concerns of US bombing in
Fallujah Fallujah ( ) is a city in Al Anbar Governorate, Iraq. Situated on the Euphrates, Euphrates River, it is located roughly to the west of the capital city of Baghdad and from the neighboring city of Ramadi. The city is located in the region ...
, according to a letter published in INA's newspaper. In December 2003, he flew to CIA headquarters in Langley together with fellow INA official Nouri Badran to discuss detailed plans for setting up a domestic secret service. The agency was to be headed by Badran, a former Ba'athist who served Saddam as an ambassador until 1990, and, controversially, recruited several agents for Saddam's Mukhabarat. When the
Iraqi National Intelligence Service The Iraqi National Intelligence Service (INIS; ) is a civilian intelligence agency whose constitutional duties is to collect intelligence, assess threats to national security, and advise the Iraqi government. The INIS is subject to legislative ove ...
was set up in March 2004, its designated director was Mohammed Abdullah Mohammed al-Shehwani, another former Ba'athist exile with ties to INA.


Interim Prime Minister

On 28 May 2004, Allawi was elected unanimously by the Governing Council to be the Interim
Prime Minister of Iraq The prime minister of the Republic of Iraq is the head of government of Iraq and the commander-in-chief of the Iraqi Armed Forces. On 27 October 2022, Mohammed Shia' Al Sudani became the incumbent prime minister. History The prime minist ...
to govern the country beginning with the United States' handover of sovereignty (30 June 2004) until national elections, scheduled for early 2005. Although many believe the decision was reached largely on the advice of
United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...
special envoy to Iraq,
Lakhdar Brahimi Lakhdar Brahimi (Algerian Arabic, Algerian pronunciation: ; ; '; born 1 January 1934) is an Algerian United Nations diplomat who served as the United Nations and Arab League Special Envoy to Syria until 14 May 2014. He was Ministry of Foreign Aff ...
, ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'' reported that Brahimi only endorsed him reluctantly after pressure from U.S. officials. (In response to a question about the role of the U.S. in Allawi's appointment, Brahimi replied: "I sometimes say, I'm sure he doesn't mind me saying that, Bremer is the dictator of Iraq. He has the money. He has the signature. Nothing happens without his agreement in this country.") Two weeks later, Brahimi announced his resignation, due to "great difficulties and frustration". At the time of his nomination, Allawi was often described in the US mainstream media as a moderate Shia, a member of Iraq's majority faith, chosen for his secular, national views. On 28 June 2004 (two days early), the U.S.-led coalition handed over power to Allawi and the
Iraqi Interim Government The Iraqi Interim Government was created by the United States and its coalition allies as a caretaker government to govern Iraq until the drafting of the new constitution following the National Assembly election conducted on January 30, 2005 ...
, who were sworn in later that same day. After his interim government assumed legal custody of Saddam Hussein and re-introduced
capital punishment Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty and formerly called judicial homicide, is the state-sanctioned killing of a person as punishment for actual or supposed misconduct. The sentence (law), sentence ordering that an offender b ...
, Allawi gave assurances that he would not interfere with the trial and would accept any court decisions. In an interview with
Dubai Dubai (Help:IPA/English, /duːˈbaɪ/ Help:Pronunciation respelling key, ''doo-BYE''; Modern Standard Arabic, Modern Standard Arabic: ; Emirati Arabic, Emirati Arabic: , Romanization of Arabic, romanized: Help:IPA/English, /diˈbej/) is the Lis ...
-based TV station
Al Arabiya Arabiya (, transliterated: '; meaning "The Arabic One" or "The Arab One") is a Saudi state-owned international Arabic news television channel. It is based in Riyadh and is a subsidiary of MBC Group. The channel is a flagship of the media c ...
he said: "As for the execution, that is for the court to decide—so long as a decision is reached impartially and fairly." Allawi's government also wrote a new emergency regulation, which allows the executive branch to declare martial law, impose curfews and detain suspects.
Paul Bremer Lewis Paul Bremer III (born September 30, 1941) is a retired American diplomat. He was the second ''de facto'' head of state of Iraq as leader of the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) following the 2003 invasion of Iraq by the United State ...
's aides said Allawi lacked the power to impose martial law, and Secretary of State
Colin Powell Colin Luther Powell ( ; – ) was an Americans, American diplomat, and army officer who was the 65th United States secretary of state from 2001 to 2005. He was the first African-American to hold the office. He was the 15th National Security ...
warned that the U.S. would not support such a move. "The last thing we want", says a senior U.S. official, "is for the world to think we're foisting a new strongman on Iraq". Though, in addition to the stick of martial law, the government planned to offer a carrot of a broad amnesty for insurgents who have taken up arms against the U.S.-led occupation forces. Allawi himself has made clear that his government will reach out to Iraqi insurgents who have fought the Coalition for "patriotic motives" while seeking to isolate and destroy foreign elements such as the network led by the Jordanian jihadist Musab al-Zarqawi. Allawi knew that both the Sunni insurgency and the one waged by supporters of Shiite firebrand Moqtada Sadr have significant popular support, while his own government has yet to win the loyalty of Iraqis. On 18 July, Iraqi militants offered a $285,000 reward for anyone who could kill Iyad Allawi. During the summer of 2004, Allawi made several decisions seen as controversial at the time, but later worked in his interest as they demonstrated to Iraqis that Allawi did not favour one sect over another, and that he was a strong leader not afraid to use force to bring back the rule of law. Most notably, his decision to support the military incursions of both
Najaf Najaf is the capital city of the Najaf Governorate in central Iraq, about 160 km (99 mi) south of Baghdad. Its estimated population in 2024 is about 1.41 million people. It is widely considered amongst the holiest cities of Shia Islam an ...
and Falluja made him extremely unpopular amongst some Iraqis at the time. He also announced the creation of General Security Directorate, a domestic spy agency, whose main role is to counteract terrorist groups and the Iraqi insurgency. Allawi led the Iraqi National Accord during the January 2005 Iraqi election. His campaign was mainly characterised by his attempt to combat the character assassination that was led by Iranian-sponsored groups. His campaign suffered when he visited the Imam Ali shrine in Najaf on 4 December 2004, where an unknown group attacked him. Allawi claimed that it was an assassination attempt. The INA came in at third place in the first elections, with 14% of the vote, which on a party versus coalition makes him head one of the largest represented parties. In the 2010 elections, Allawi's list won the most votes and beat incumbent Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki by 2 seats.


Assassination attempt

On 3 December 2004 Rafik Yousef and two other men, all members of Ansar al-Islam were arrested, and later convicted, of planning to assassinate Allawi. In one tape in August 2004, a speaker identified as Abu Anas al-Shami (second man of Zarqawi and leader of
Jama'at al-Tawhid wal-Jihad Jama'at al-Tawhid wal-Jihad (), abbreviated as JTJ or Jama'at, was a Salafi jihadist militant group. It was founded in Jordan in 1999, and was led by Jordanian national Abu Musab al-Zarqawi for the entirety of its existence. During the Iraqi ...
made up mostly by foreigners) said the militants planned to kill Iraqi prime minister Ayad Allawi, soldiers and police officers.


Post-Prime Ministership

In preparation for the next parliamentary elections that took place in Iraq in December 2005, Allawi formed an alliance between many groups, including secular Sunni and Shia groups and the
Iraqi Communist Party The Iraqi Communist Party ( '; ) is a communist party and the oldest active party in Iraq. Since its foundation in 1934, it has dominated the left in Iraqi politics. It played a prominent role in shaping the political history of Iraq between it ...
under one electoral list (the Iraqi National List). The Iraqi National List was represented in the coalition government led by Nouri al-Maliki, but Allawi himself did not take a Cabinet post. The party eventually boycotted the government in 2007. In preparation for upcoming national elections, Allawi formed a new coalition with leading Shia politician Iskander Witwit (one of the leaders of the 1991 uprising against Saddam), Shia tribal Sheikh Hussein al-Shalan, the deputy Prime Minister Rafi al-Issawi, Sunni politician Saleh Mutlaq and Sunni Vice President Tariq al-Hashemi called the Iraqi National Movement. The 2010 parliamentary election ended with a weeks-long wait for an announcement of results by the Iraqi
election commission An election commission is a body charged with overseeing the implementation of electioneering process of any country. The formal names of election commissions vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, and may be styled an electoral commission, a c ...
. When the results finally came on 26 March 2010, Allawi's Iraqiya bloc was declared the biggest winner of the parliamentary election with two seats more than Allawi's rival al-Maliki's party in the Assembly. He was appointed one of the three Vice Presidents of Iraq by new Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi on 8 September 2014. On 11 August 2015, the Parliament approved a reform package by Prime Minister al-Abadi that foresaw, among other measures, the elimination of the three vice president posts. However, following a lawsuit filed by fellow Vice President Usama al-Nujayfi, al-Maliki declared in September 2015 that he was still holding his office because removing the post was not in line with the Iraqi Constitution. Osama al-Nujaifi filed a complaint against the decision in November 2015, calling it unconstitutional. On 10 October 2016, the three posts of Vice Presidents were restored by the Supreme Court of Iraq which termed their abolition unconstitutional. Allawi stated on 17 April 2017, that he had received information from Iraqi and regional contacts knowledgeable about Iraq that the
Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant The Islamic State (IS), also known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and Daesh, is a transnational Salafi jihadist organization and unrecognized quasi-state. IS occupied signi ...
group was in talks with
al-Qaeda , image = Flag of Jihad.svg , caption = Jihadist flag, Flag used by various al-Qaeda factions , founder = Osama bin Laden{{Assassinated, Killing of Osama bin Laden , leaders = {{Plainlist, * Osama bin Lad ...
about a possible alliance. He added that even if the group lost all of its territory, its insurgency in the form of sleeper cells will continue. Allawi stated that "the Iraqi people are longing for the days of Saddam Hussein".


Personal life

Allawi allegedly has faced several
assassination Assassination is the willful killing, by a sudden, secret, or planned attack, of a personespecially if prominent or important. It may be prompted by political, ideological, religious, financial, or military motives. Assassinations are orde ...
attempts in England and throughout the Middle East, purportedly by agents of Saddam's regime. According to Mossack Fonseca documents that came to light in the
Panama Papers The Panama Papers () are 11.5 million leaked documents (or 2.6 terabytes of data) published beginning April 3, 2016. The papers detail financial and attorney–client information for more than 214,488 offshore entities. These document ...
release by the
International Consortium of Investigative Journalists The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, Inc. (ICIJ), is an independent global network of 280 investigative journalists and over 140 media organizations spanning more than 100 countries. It is based in Washington, D.C., with ...
in 2016, Allawi had Mossack Fonseca supply a
nominee director A board of directors is a governing body that supervises the activities of a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government agency. The powers, duties, and responsibilities of a board of directors are determined by government regulations ...
to stand in for him and shield his ownership of the Panama-registered company IMF Holdings. This company was dissolved in 2013; it had owned a $1.5 million house near London. A second offshore, Moonlight Estates, registered in the
British Virgin Islands The British Virgin Islands (BVI), officially the Virgin Islands, are a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory in the Caribbean, to the east of Puerto Rico and the United States Virgin Islands, US Virgin Islands and north-west ...
, also held a property in London on his behalf. His media contact confirmed his sole ownership of the two companies and of Foxwood Estates as well, saying IMF was set up to own real estate for security reasons based on legal advice following an assassination attempt, and added that any
income Income is the consumption and saving opportunity gained by an entity within a specified timeframe, which is generally expressed in monetary terms. Income is difficult to define conceptually and the definition may be different across fields. F ...
from the properties was reported, and taxes paid "promptly and on time". He is the cousin of
Ahmed Chalabi Ahmed Abdel Hadi Chalabi (; 30 October 1945 – 3 November 2015) was an Iraqi dissident politician, convicted fraudster and founder of the Iraqi National Congress (INC) who served as the President of the Governing Council of Iraq ( 37th ...
, Ali Allawi and Mohammed Tawfiq Allawi. Allawi has two daughters and one son: Sarah (born 1988), Najat (born 1989) and Alhamza (born 1996). His youngest child and only son, Alhamza, died on 4 May 2025 in Ibn Sina Hospital, Baghdad.


References


External links

*
Resources on Ayad Allawi






* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20070309003122/http://www.iyadallawi.net/ Personal website of Dr. Ayad Allawi - A vision for all
- Ahlulbayt Television Network

Website of the National Iraqi List for 15 December 2005 elections

Website of the Iraqi National Accord

Text of Allawi's Speech to U.S. Congress, 23 September 2004

Dow Jones Newswire, 24 January 2004




* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20050113133327/http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/6C99B500-2F8E-4558-9746-C315C59F1978.htm Profile on al-Jazeera
Profile in ''The Times''

Profile in the ''New Yorker''


*

23 August 2004, Aljazeera.

13 November 2004, ''
The Spectator ''The Spectator'' is a weekly British political and cultural news magazine. It was first published in July 1828, making it the oldest surviving magazine in the world. ''The Spectator'' is politically conservative, and its principal subject a ...
''.
Ayad Allawi on BBC Doha Debates
3 November 2007, Doha, Qatar. {{DEFAULTSORT:Allawi, Iyad 1944 births Living people Alumni of the University of London British people of Iraqi descent Iraqi Shia Muslims Iraqi activists Iraqi dissidents Iraqi expatriates in the United Kingdom Iraqi National Accord politicians Iraqi people of Lebanese descent Iraqi physicians Psychiatrists Members of the Council of Representatives of Iraq Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party – Iraq Region politicians Osseiran family Politicians from Baghdad Prime ministers of Iraq Vice presidents of Iraq People named in the Panama Papers