MP urges clause on compensation in SOFA

BAGHDAD / IraqiNews.com: An independent parliamentarian on Monday called on the Iraqi government to include a clause in the U.S. troop withdrawal agreement whereby Iraq would be compensated for the damage incurred as a result of the U.S.-led invasion. “The absence of a reference to damages in the agreement is enough to reject it in its current form,” MP Hussein al-Faluji told IraqiNews.com. The Iraqi cabinet has endorsed a controversial security pact with the United States, 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 throughout the past months. The pact should determine the legal framework for U.S. troop presence when a UN mandate expires at the end of 2008. SS (P) 1