Across Asia: Iraq

Foreign troops vote put off

Iraq's parliament speaker has delayed a session to approve a resolution allowing British and other non-American troops to remain in Iraq until July 2009.

Speaker Mahmoud al-Mashhadani called for the delay yesterday, after a group of lawmakers demanded his resignation on an unrelated issue. The lawmakers said they were boycotting yesterday's session until their demands were met. It remains unclear when Parliament will resume. If the resolution is not passed before a UN mandate expires on Dec 31, those troops would have no legal ground to remain