Iraqi politicians sign interim constitution after resolving political squabble

BAGHDAD, Iraq — Iraq's Governing Council signed a landmark interim constitution Monday after resolving a political impasse sparked by objections from the country's top Shiite cleric. The signing was a key step in U.S. plans to hand over power to the Iraqis by July 1.

In a sign of future disputes, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Husseini al-Sistani issued a religious decree just hours after the signing that said he still objected to the charter. He maintained that the constitution would be illegitimate until approved by an elected body.

"Any law prepared for the transitional period will not gain legitimacy except after it is endorsed by an elected national assembly," al-Sistani said in the fatwa, released on his Web site.

The signing took place before an audience of prominent Iraqi and American civilian and military officials, including the top administrator in Iraq, L. Paul Bremer. Of the 25 council members, 21 inked the document on an antique desk once owned by King Faisal I, Iraq's first monarch. Representatives of the other four members signed for them.

Council president Mohammed Bahr al-Ulloum called the signing a "historic moment, decisive in the history of Iraq."

"There is no doubt that this document will strengthen Iraqi unity in a way never seen before," said Massoud Barzani, a Kurdish leader on the council. "This is the first time that we Kurds feel that we are citizens of Iraq."

Aside for al-Sistani's fatwa, there were other signs that the dispute that delayed plans to sign the constitution Friday might resurface.

Council member Ibrahim al-Jaafari read a statement signed by 12 of the 13 Shiite council members that said they agreed to sign the interim constitution without demanding changes only in order to safeguard national unity. Last week, bombers carried out deadly attacks on Shiite pilgrims in Baghdad and Karbala.

"We say here our decision to sign the document is pegged to reservations," al-Jaafarai said.

One clause in dispute, according to al-Jaafari, would give Kurds and Sunni Arabs veto power over a permanent constitution expected to be drafted and put to a referendum next year. The other bars any changes to the document signed Monday except with the approval of a proposed president, his two deputies, and three-fourths of a parliament to be elected by January 2005.