Iraq Parliament expected to vote on a security pact with US

Iraq BaghdadBaghdad  - The Iraqi parliament is expected to pass on Wednesday a security agreement with the US that would decide the future of 150,000 US troops in the country despite the challenge from anti-US Shiites group opposing the deal.

The 275-member legislature is expected to vote by a show of hands on the wide-ranging accord, which would require US troops to withdraw from Iraqi cities by the end of June and from the rest of the country by the end of 2011.

The US-Iraqi security pact, also known as Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA), paves the way for continued US and coalition presence in Iraq beyond the end of the UN mandate which expires at the end of the year.

Demands from Sunni politicians for a national referendum on the agreement appeared to be gaining ground on Wednesday, as top members of the ruling Shiite coalition said that a national vote could take place in July 2009.

After eight months of intensive negotations between Baghdad and Washington, the US had given the Iraqis more than expected in the agreement. War critics say that the conflict had drained the US economy and harmed its reputation in the international scene.

The agreement enjoys the support of the United Iraqi Alliance, the Kurdish alliance, and a number of independent parliamentarians, which is enough to pass the deal with more than the required majority of 138 votes.

Meanwhile, Sadrists, loyal to the anti-US cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, hold 30 seats in the parliament, and are the most vocal critics of the deal along with Shiite Fadhila party
(15 seats).

The Sunni bloc demands more political power for the Sunni minority in Iraq and more representation in the Iraqi security forces.

Lawmaker Samira al-Maoswy, a supporter of the deal said "that the agreement could pass with half the votes, but we hope that it would pass with three-quarters of the votes." (dpa)

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