Syrian security forces searched the Damascus apartment of former Iraqi President Jalal Talabani without prior notice on January 3, seizing the keys to the property in an incident that has sparked diplomatic tensions.

The raid on the apartment, located in the capital's upscale Al-Mazraa district, prompted a formal protest from the Iraqi Embassy in Damascus, which has intensified diplomatic communications to resolve the matter, Kurdistani Nwe reported.

A security unit from the General Security Forces of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham demanded entry to the 150-square-metre property, conducted a search, and retained the keys, according to the apartment's caretaker. The Syrian Ministry of Information denied the incident occurred.

"The embassy lodged an official complaint and urged Syrian authorities to take appropriate measures regarding the incident," an embassy source told 964media.

The apartment, which served as both residence and political base for Talabani in the 1990s, contains historical memorabilia including photographs documenting his career as a Kurdish leader and his international diplomatic engagements.

Talabani, who founded the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan in Damascus in 1975, used the fourth-floor property during a pivotal period in Iraq's history.

Abdulrazzaq Koyi, the PUK's representative in Damascus, confirmed that the keys to both Talabani's apartment and his own residence remain held by a local security chief known as Abu Rakan, whose headquarters is near the Central Bank building.

The Syrian interim Ministry of Interior has not responded to requests for comment at the time of publication, though an official promised to review the matter.

Talabani died on October 3, 2017, in Berlin, Germany, at the age of 83. He had been receiving medical treatment in Germany following a stroke in 2012 that had largely removed him from public life.