Bush asks Iraqi Shias not to alienate Sunnis

Iraqis holding up the national flag and picture of ousted president Saddam Hussein during a protest against the constitution on the streets of Baquba, 60kms northeast of Baghdad yesterday. Some 50 people took part in the protest against the new constitution being drafted at the moment by the constitution committee. PHOTO: AFP

Iraqi leaders say they will continue talking later in the day about the draft document which negotiators say will go to a referendum in October even if Sunni Arabs continue to reject it.

There may only be a day or two left to achieve consensus before parliament declares the present draft final but several officials said there were no major meetings so far on Friday.

US diplomats are closely shepherding the process to try to foster a consensus rather than see a bitter referendum campaign.

Sunnis, with scant representation in parliament following a boycott of January elections, have warned of civil war if the constitution goes through as it stands -- with provisions for a federal state they fear could see Shia and Kurdish regions hive off oil resources in the north and south.

Sources close to the ruling Shia alliance told Reuters that Bush spoke with Shia leader Abdul Aziz al-Hakim to ask him to seek agreement with the disaffected Sunnis.

"Bush asked him to be more flexible with regard to Sunni demands," they said.

US officials confirmed the call but not its contents.

Hakim, a cleric, holds no post in Prime Minister Ibrahim Jaafari's government but his Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq (SCIRI) is a key party in the coalition.

Bush has been insistent that Iraqis stick to a timetable for democracy set down under US supervision last year, as part of an overall plan to reduce US troop numbers in Iraq where they face a relentless Sunni-led insurgency.