Iraq council wishes to stay on;Washington seen likely to grant extension

[Khephra]

BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) Most members of Iraq's Governing Council want the U.S.-appointed body to stay beyond July 1, the date set for a provisional Iraqi government to take office.

The coalition agreement on handing sovereignty back to Iraqis says the 25-seat interim body must cease to exist. But the Bush administration, faced with mounting military casualties in Iraq and a re-election campaign, could consider granting the council members' wishes to stay as a small price to pay for the implementation of the political plan.

The agreement ran into trouble when members of Iraq's Shiite Muslim leadership objected to the election of a transitional legislature through regional caucuses rather than direct elections.

For the United States, the plan is vital. It provides for an end of the occupation July 1, when security responsibilities shift from the U.S.-led coalition to an Iraqi administration, possibly allowing a reduction in the size of American forces in Iraq.

more........

http://www.boston.com/dailynews/340/world/Iraq_council_wishes_to_stay_on:.shtml

[whirlygigspin]

1. uh oh

here we go down the slippery slope... :puke:

[izzie]

2. I read most of these people...

Have spent the last 20 years out side the country or Iraq and now most spend a good deal of time in other countries doing their own busines. They fly at our cost.Most have nothing to do with the people of Iraq.