Urgent/Parliament questions Zebari on SOFA

BAGHDAD / IraqiNews.com: Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari on Wednesday attended the parliament’s session, during which he faced questions on the U.S. troops withdrawal agreement, a media source said. “Parliament’s Speaker Mahmoud al-Mashhadani headed the session which focuses on the security agreement with Washington,” the source told IraqiNews.com. “Today’s agenda includes the second reading of the U.S. troops withdrawal agreement,” the source added. The Iraqi cabinet endorsed the controversial pact, also known as the status-of-forces agreement (SOFA), by an overwhelming majority of 27 votes to 1. The Iraqi and U.S. sides have been negotiating a long-term security deal during the past months. The pact should determine the legal framework for the U.S. presence in Iraq after the end of this year, when the international mandate granted by the UN Security Council to the U.S. army to intervene in Iraq is due to expire. SH (P) 1