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International Pressure Mounts on Iraqis to Agree on New Constitution
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(http://enews.voanews.com/t?ctl=EA50FD:3919ACA

Iraqi officials say US and British diplomats urging them to break
impasse and come to agreement on draft constitution by Monday's
extended deadline





Iraq's National Assembly votes unanimously for a seven-day extension
for constitution draft on eve of original deadlineIraqi officials say
U.S. and British diplomats are urging them to break an impasse and
come to an agreement on a draft constitution by Monday's extended
deadline.

Iraqis involved in the constitutional talks said Thursday that
international pressure is mounting on negotiators to resolve issues,
including the role of Islam in the state and power-sharing between the
central and regional governments.

The United States is hopeful that a consensus on the constitution will
help stem insurgent violence. Wednesday, three closely coordinated car
bombings killed 43 people in Baghdad. Thursday, a judge and his driver
were gunned down on a Baghdad street, and the U.S. military reported
four of its soldiers were killed in a roadside bomb blast in Samarra,
north of the capital.

Some information for this report provided by AFP and Reuters.


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