Top US general says Iraq draft constitution divisive News
Top US general says Iraq draft constitution divisive

[JURIST] US Army General George Casey [official profile], the senior US commander in Iraq, expressed concern over the Iraqi constitution [JURIST news archive] at a news conference [official transcript] Friday, saying the draft [PDF text] had created divisiveness among the country's ethnic groups, as many Iraqi Sunnis are opposed to it and intend to vote against it. Casey cited this divisiveness as one reason he is uncertain when American and coalition troops can begin to withdraw from Iraq. In the past week, Casey has revised his predictions for the start of a troop withdrawal from early 2006 to later next year. Iraqis will vote on the draft charter in an October 15 referendum. VOA has more.