The governor of Iraq's biggest province, who was kidnapped earlier this month, was found dead along with his militant captors after a clash with United States forces, said government spokesman Laith Kubba on Tuesday. Kubba said the body of Anbar Governor Raja Nawaf was found tied to a gas canister in a house near the town of Rawa two days ago. He was discovered after US forces conducted a routine sweep through a neighbourhood and met fierce resistance from insurgents in the house. Authorities do not know how Nawaf died but it was likely that concrete fell on him after the clashes triggered explosives in the house, said Kubba. Nawaf and four bodyguards were kidnapped on the road from Qaim to Ramadi just days after he became Anbar's governor. Officials and relatives said they were kidnapped by militants loyal to the Al Qaeda's leader in Iraq Abu Musab al-Zarqawi because of a dispute with Nawaf's tribe. Kubba said the bodies of two Syrians, one Jordanian and an Algerian were found beside Nawaf after the fighting. He said Nawaf, also the leader of the Abu al-Mahal tribe, had pursued militants in Qaim. "He had a main role in killing 17 extremists in Qaim," said the spokesman.