Iraqi leaders want to amend security pact

BAGHDAD, Oct. 22 (UPI) -- The Iraqi Cabinet wants to amend the security pact allowing U.S. troops in Iraq after a similar U.N. mandate expires Dec. 31, a government spokesman said.

Iraqi ministers are planning to debate changes to the draft U.S.-Iraq security agreement, casting doubt on its passage before the U.S. presidential elections, the Los Angeles Times reported Wednesday.

"The Council of Ministers has unanimously agreed that there are necessary amendments that need to be made to the current draft in order to raise the agreement to a nationally acceptable level," government spokesman Ali Dabbagh said in a statement.

Only Iraq's Kurdish bloc publicly backs the current accord, while Shiite Muslim and Sunni Arab expressed concern for endorsing the draft, described by U.S. and Iraqi negotiators as in its final form.

In Washington, U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates said time was short, warning that failure to reach a deal or renew the U.N. mandate would mean U.S. operations would be suspended, the Times reported.

One Iraqi government official who attended Tuesday's session told the Times the Cabinet would start debating amendments Sunday.

The official said some ministers called for the agreement to be put before a national referendum. Ministers also want more precise language regarding immunity of U.S. troops from prosecution in Iraqi courts and for a withdrawal of U.S. forces by the end of 2011.