[JURIST] Iraqi prime minister spokesman Laith Kuba said during a press conference Sunday that the Sunni community's lack of experience in the political arena is a weak link in drafting the new constitution since this is the first time they have been in a negotiation process. However, Kuba also indicated his reluctance for any group to be "marginalized" in creating the constitution. The Sunnis, who now hold only two positions on the 55-member constitutional committee, have been lobbying for increased representation and a spokesman said Saturday they would request UN arbitration [JURIST report] if they were not given additional seats. President Jalal Talabani indicated Thursday that the Sunnis may be given 20-25 more seats [JURIST report] but Friday the Shiite-led Iraqi government offered only 13 [JURIST report], a number that was immediately rejected by the Sunni community. AP has more.

[JURIST] Italians began voting at 8 AM Rome time Sunday in referendums [referendum questions on ballot] to lessen the limitations on existing legislation on fertility treatment and stem cell research. Pre-referendum polls [JURIST report] predicted that the referendum would fail, suggesting that only 30-40% of voters would show up, when at least 50% are necessary in order for the referendum to be valid. Four hours into the voting, the Italian Interior Ministry [official website] estimated that 4.5% of eligible voters had cast their ballots based on information received from 100 out of the 110 Italian provinces. By 10 PM some 18% had voted [Interior Ministry figures]. Polls will reopen Monday at 7 AM for the final day of voting. The referendum has been a focus of bitter intense debate [JURIST report] between the Vatican [official website], which has urged Catholic voters to abstain, and Italy's Radical Party [website in Italian] who say the current law is anti-women and anti-research. Read an Italy Magazine analysis [in Italian] of the referendum situation; the Italian Interior Ministry hosts the official referendum website [in Italian]. AP has more.

[JURIST] US Representative Duncan Hunter [official website], chairman of the House Armed Services Committee [official website], said in an interview with Fox News Sunday that there are members of the Bush administration who want to close the Guantanamo Bay prison camp to end the debate over allegations of abuse and "move on". In an interview that will air on Monday, however, Vice President Dick Cheney has indicated to Fox that there is "no plan to close" the prison. After former President Jimmy Carter and others urged the closing [JURIST report] last week, President Bush said he was "exploring all alternatives" [JURIST report] last week while Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said there were no plans to close Guantanamo [JURIST report] by anyone in the administration. Hunter's interview comes in the wake of a Time magazine article [access to article] released Sunday which details an interrogation record [excerpts of interrogation log] of al Qaeda suspect Mohammad al-Kahtani, a Saudi Arabian who is alleged by the Pentagon to be the fifth member meant to participate in the hijacking of United Airlines flight 93 [Wikipedia backgrounder] on September 11. The article indicates that throughout Kahtani's interrogation, he was forced to bark like a dog, subjected to Christina Aguilera music to keep him from sleeping, and was denied requested prayer time. Reuters has more.

[JURIST] New York-based monitoring group Human Rights Watch [official website] said Sunday that the presidential election in Iran set for Friday cannot be free and fair because the country's unelected religious authority has approved a narrow list of candidates. A new HRW report [text; accompanying press release] highlights the fact that current Iran election law allows only candidates chosen by the country's Guardian Council [BBC backgrounder] to run. The Council, established under the Iran Constitution [text] and made up primarily of Sh`ia Muslim clerics, wields great power, including constitutional interpretation, final approval of legislation passed by parliament, and ultimate approval of all presidential candidates. The Council has approved just 8 of the more than 1000 candidates who have applied, and has denied all female candidates and others who possess antiestablishment views. Iran's election laws also require candidates to proclaim their loyalty to the religious doctrine of the Jurisconsult, or ultimate rule. Last month the Council reconsidered its ban [JURIST report] on reformist candidates and reinstated former higher education minister Mostafa Moin and incumbent Vice President Mohsen Mehr-Alizadeh as candidates in the June 17 presidential vote. Reuters has more.

[JURIST] The Palestinian National Authority [official website] carried out four death sentences Sunday, the first time the Palestinian government had put convicts to death since 2002, when Bashir Atari, 21, was executed by firing squad for cutting the throats of two women. The four men executed Sunday had been convicted of murder and other crimes, and were put to death after Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas signed execution orders Saturday. Capital punishment has been in place since the Authority was established in 1994, but was later suspended by Yasser Arafat amid pressure from human rights groups. Some call the executions - three by hanging, one by firing squad - a calculated move to restore government order after years of virtual lawlessness. Last month, Israeli cabinet minister Natan Sharansky urged the Palestinian Authority to reverse its decision [JURIST report] to reintroduce capital punishment, especially as against accused collaborators with Israel, who make up 50% of the Palestinians on the Authority's death row. The Palestinian Center for Human Rights has more on the executions. AP has more.

[JURIST] Sudan officials announced Sunday that the nation will set up its own court to investigate and prosecute crimes committed during the uprising in Darfur [BBC backgrounder]. Last week the Sudan [JURIST news archive] government backed down [JURIST report] from its opposition to International Criminal Court [official website] investigations [JURIST report], but made it clear that it is opposed to sending citizens to a foreign court for trial. The Sudan tribunal, whose creation was intimated by the Sudan government last month [JURIST report] but not expected for at least another month, will be led by Supreme Court judge Mohmoud Mohamed Daeed Abkam, with investigations scheduled to commence soon. Human rights groups and the United Nations [UN report on Darfur; PDF] have expressed doubt that the nation can handle criminal investigations into the matter. The Sudan News Agency has local coverage. Aljazeera has more.