Iraq unveils security measures for vote (AP) Updated: 2005-10-09 08:42 But the organization has gotten a cold reception from some Shiite leaders in
the government, resentful over perceived Arab League inaction in response to
Saddam Hussein's regime and what they see as the predominantly Sunni league's
bias in favor of Iraq's Sunni minority.
Meanwhile, all sides were stepping up their campaigns for and against the
constitution. Leaders of the top Sunni political factions met in Baghdad to plan
how to rally their followers in the "no" vote, with most of them pushing aside
calls for Sunnis to boycott as happened in last January's legislative elections.
"It is a dangerous draft that only helps the interests of imperialism on our
soil. This constitution is being imposed by force in a dictatorial way,"
Mohammed Beshar al-Feydi, of the Committee of Islamic Scholars, told Al-Jazeera
television.
In Tikrit, Saddam Hussein's hometown, the Iraqi Islamic Party passed out
copies of the constitution to worshippers at a Sunni mosque and urged them to go
to the polls to reject it.
A strong Sunni turnout is key for defeating the constitution. Sunnis have a
strong enough population in four provinces to have a chance of getting a
two-thirds "no" vote. But three of those provinces also have a significant
Shiite or Kurdish presence likely to be strongly motivated to vote "yes," so
Sunni leaders must drum up voters to outweigh them.
Government media also was pushing for voters to turn out. The state-owned
Sabah newspaper ran a contest promising prizes up to $5,000 for anyone who could
answer a series of questions about the text of the constitution to prove they'd
read it.
Al-Iraqiya television ran call-in and talk shows about the referendum, with
people from all sides participating. "I will vote yes to the constitution
because it's a guarantee of our rights and an end to dictatorship," said Fadil
Abbas, one man in a street interview.
An Iraqi policeman and soldier read copies of
Iraq's draft constitution in the town of Kut, 160 kms south of Baghdad
October 8, 2005. [Reuters] | In western Iraq, U.S.
troops continued their four-day-old Operation River Gate, a sweep of several
towns along the Euphrates River valley, one of two offensives launched last week
in Anbar province against insurgents.
The two U.S. soldiers were killed Friday by small arms fire near the town of
Haqlaniyah during the operation.
Six other U.S. service members have been killed in past days in River Gate
and the second operation, Iron Fist, which ended Thursday night further upriver
near the Syrian border. At least 1,952 U.S. service members have died since the
Iraq war started in March 2003, according to an Associated Press count.
The military had said the towns were under insurgents' control, but most of
the fighters appear to have fled or gone into hiding before the sweeps — leaving
Marines and soldiers to deal with booby-trapped streets.
In Haditha, near Haqlaniyah, Iraqi commanders accompanied by U.S. Marines
walked through neighborhoods, telling residents that security forces would
remain in the city and handing out fliers urging residents to call in tips about
the insurgency.
In the latest violence, insurgents killed a local council member in the
northern city of Kirkuk in a drive-by shooting. Gunmen also killed a police
captain in Baghdad and another in Samarra.
Iraqi soldiers opened fire on a civilian car that failed to stop at a
checkpoint in Baghdad, killing the driver and wounding five other occupants,
including a child. Four bodies, all bound and shot in the head, were found
dumped in separate parts of the capital.
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