Deadlock as Iraq ticks down to deadline

BAGHDAD – Hours from a midnight deadline that could plunge Iraq’s fledgling political system into crisis, there was no sign of an end to deadlock yesterday over a new constitution and profound doubt over where that would lead.

Parliament was summoned for another special evening session at 7pm to hear proposals from party leaders and legislators who have been working on a draft in committee. But as with a similar meeting a week ago, the outcome was unclear.A further extension of the deadline is possible, so is a dissolution of parliament and a new election.A meeting of leaders was set for 5pm, officials said.Though portrayed in Washington as a key test of Iraq’s ability to hold together and overcome the threat of civil war that looms behind the prospect of a US troop withdrawal, there is little sign that clinching a deal would affect the violence.Gunmen killed 10 people, including eight policemen, as they drove in a minivan north of Baghdad yesterday.Sunni Arab rebels have targeted the new, US-trained forces of the Shi’ite-led interim government.In the capital and other cities, reports of daily sectarian murders and kidnappings keep people on edge.At the parliament hall in the fortified Green Zone compound, came the sound from many sides of the various ethnic and sectarian divides of heels being dug in and talk of dissolving the National Assembly to start the entire process over again.Such a prospect will look like a major setback for US diplomats working hard behind closed doors to save the deadline.SUNNIS TO BLOCK CONSTITUTION? Delegates from the Sunni Arab minority, which shunned the last election in January as it fought to come to terms with the loss of power it suffered with the fall of Saddam Hussein, spoke of using the ballot box to block any constitution they dislike.Negotiators from various groups said the Shi’ite Islamist- led ruling coalition, including Kurdish leaders, was working with US ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad and his team to revise recent drafts into a form that Sunnis and others could accept.Key has been Sunni rejection of Shi’ite majority demands for a chance to set up an autonomous Shi’ite region in the oil-rich south at the same time as Kurds insist on retaining provisions on federalism that will guarantee their freedoms in the north.Muddying the waters in the past two days has also been what secular Kurds have complained of as US concessions to Islamist Shi’ites that could strengthen the role of Islam in the law.”In the past two days, negotiations have been among the Kurdish and Shi’ite blocs,” said Iyad al-Samarrai, a delegate from the Sunni-led Iraqi Islamic Party.”We’re expecting a general meeting later today to discuss their proposals.”Bahaa al-Araji, a leading Shi’ite Islamist on the drafting committee, accused secular Shi’ites led by former interim Prime Minister Iyad Allawi and Kurdish leaders of a “conspiracy” to sink the present negotiations and force new elections.”The Shi’ites are preparing an alternative draft which they know they can push through parliament,” Araji said, raising a prospect that Sunnis said could lead to an effective veto on the document at a referendum currently scheduled for October.- Nampa-ReutersBut as with a similar meeting a week ago, the outcome was unclear.A further extension of the deadline is possible, so is a dissolution of parliament and a new election.A meeting of leaders was set for 5pm, officials said.Though portrayed in Washington as a key test of Iraq’s ability to hold together and overcome the threat of civil war that looms behind the prospect of a US troop withdrawal, there is little sign that clinching a deal would affect the violence.Gunmen killed 10 people, including eight policemen, as they drove in a minivan north of Baghdad yesterday.Sunni Arab rebels have targeted the new, US-trained forces of the Shi’ite-led interim government.In the capital and other cities, reports of daily sectarian murders and kidnappings keep people on edge.At the parliament hall in the fortified Green Zone compound, came the sound from many sides of the various ethnic and sectarian divides of heels being dug in and talk of dissolving the National Assembly to start the entire process over again.Such a prospect will look like a major setback for US diplomats working hard behind closed doors to save the deadline.SUNNIS TO BLOCK CONSTITUTION? Delegates from the Sunni Arab minority, which shunned the last election in January as it fought to come to terms with the loss of power it suffered with the fall of Saddam Hussein, spoke of using the ballot box to block any constitution they dislike.Negotiators from various groups said the Shi’ite Islamist- led ruling coalition, including Kurdish leaders, was working with US ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad and his team to revise recent drafts into a form that Sunnis and others could accept.Key has been Sunni rejection of Shi’ite majority demands for a chance to set up an autonomous Shi’ite region in the oil-rich south at the same time as Kurds insist on retaining provisions on federalism that will guarantee their freedoms in the north.Muddying the waters in the past two days has also been what secular Kurds have complained of as US concessions to Islamist Shi’ites that could strengthen the role of Islam in the law.”In the past two days, negotiations have been among the Kurdish and Shi’ite blocs,” said Iyad al-Samarrai, a delegate from the Sunni-led Iraqi Islamic Party.”We’re expecting a general meeting later today to discuss their proposals.”Bahaa al-Araji, a leading Shi’ite Islamist on the drafting committee, accused secular Shi’ites led by former interim Prime Minister Iyad Allawi and Kurdish leaders of a “conspiracy” to sink the present negotiations and force new elections.”The Shi’ites are preparing an alternative draft which they know they can push through parliament,” Araji said, raising a prospect that Sunnis said could lead to an effective veto on the document at a referendum currently scheduled for October.- Nampa-Reuters