Iraq Aide Brands U.S. Formula As 'Hasty'

[Barrett808]

Iraq Aide Brands U.S. Formula As 'Hasty'
By MATTHEW ROSENBERG, Associated Press Writer

BASRA, Iraq - An aide to Iraq's most prominent Shiite Muslim cleric on Friday branded the U.S. formula for transferring power a "hasty agreement" aimed at boosting President George W. Bush's re-election campaign.

In Baghdad, a roadside bomb missed American troops Friday but killed one Iraqi boy and injured three others as they played soccer along a busy street. The U.S. command also announced an investigation into alleged abuse of Iraqi prisoners in a coalition detention facility.

The violence is increasingly being overshadowed by a political deadlock over the U.S.-plan for transferring power to a sovereign Iraqi government by July 1.

Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Husseini al-Sistani, the country's most influential Shiite Muslim figure, has demanded that members of a new provisional legislature be chosen by the voters. The Americans want them selected in a series of regional caucuses.

U.S. officials insist al-Sistani's demand for elections is unfeasible given Iraq's security situation. Many Shiites suspect the Americans simply want to manipulate the caucuses to make sure favored Iraqis win seats.

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