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Elections Bill in Iraq Stalls On Kirkuk
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Qasim Dawood, an independent Shiite lawmaker, said Kurds wanted the bill to include a reference to Kirkuk's constitutionally mandated referendum on Kirkuk's status but that Arab lawmakers rejected that. The Arab lawmakers accuse the Kurds of bringing more than 750,000 Kurds into Kirkuk to affect any vote.
"The elections can't be done in this year, and that will have a negative reflection on the security and political situation," Dawood said.
Several Iraqi lawmakers said U.S. pressure could throw Iraq into further political chaos.
"The Americans are pushing for the elections at any price, and that is incorrect," said Mahdi al-Hafidh, a Community Party lawmaker. "The country is not quiet, and there is not a good climate for this election."
"There's no way to find a solution to a 100-year-old problem in days," said Mahmoud Othman, an independent Kurdish legislator. "Mr. Bush is pressing the Iraqi politicians to make a fast deal, but this kind of pressure will have a negative result on Iraq's situation. We have to delay the election in Kirkuk to give the people on the ground more time to talk and the committees to discuss the situation and to build trust between the sects in Kirkuk."
Special correspondent Aziz Alwan contributed to this report.
