Mystery surrounds death of Syrian-born imam in London

A Syrian-born British preacher was found shot dead in his car in London on Tuesday, but the reasons for his murder remain unclear as police launch a murder investigation.

Abdul Hadi Arwani, a 48-year-old former imam at a London mosque, was discovered in his car at 11:15am (1015 GMT) with a gunshot wound to his chest, Sky News reported on Wednesday.

The police appealed for anyone who may have seen his car – a dark-coloured Volkswagen Passat - in the Wembley area on Tuesday morning to get in touch to give information.

Arwani had recently complained of death threats against him, according to mourners quoted by the Daily Mirror, although such claims have yet to be verified.

He was a fierce critic of the rule of both Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and his father before him, Hafez al-Assad, prompting speculation that the London-based preacher may have been assassinated for political reasons.

"A police source told the Daily Mail that the killing had all the hallmarks of a 'state-sponsored assassination'," said the British daily.

"Detectives are now trying to establish whether his strong opposition to Assad was the motive," it added.

However, police sources quoted by the Independent said "it was possible that a feud at the mosque had turned violent," in a reference to An-Noor mosque in Acton, west London, where Arwani used to preach.

Meanwhile, the official statement from the London Metropolitan Police has been more cautious with regards to the reasons behind the murder.  

"At this very early stage detectives retain an open mind regarding the possible motive," a spokesperson said.

A father of six, Arwani graduated from a university in Jordan, specialising in Quranic studies and Islamic jurisdiction, before teaching at the London College of Islamic Studies.

Many of his former students and friends took to social media to mourn his death and post videos of the imam.  

"His prime concern was the situation in Syria," Mohamed al-Moussa, a friend of Arwani, told Alarabi TV, adding that "he had always loved giving support to the Syrian people".

In addition to preaching, al-Moussa said, Arwani loved working and "earning a living from his own labour".

Arwani had left his home country at the age of 16, over 30 years ago, fleeing capital punishment after he took pictures of massacres committed by the forces of Hafez al-Assad.

In one video of Arwani talking to al-Hiwar TV, the preacher breaks into tears when recalling how he was forced - as a child - to carry the picture of Hafez al-Assad just over three weeks after the government massacre of the city of Hama in 1982, where tens of thousands of civilians were reportedly killed.