 Shiite and Kurdish negotiators have agreed that the National Assembly should reconvene March 26 to elect a president, an official said Friday, amid reports some Kurds were dissatisfied by Shiite assurances concerning the oil-rich city of Kirkuk and a Kurdish militia. Ali al-Faisal, an alliance deputy and member of the team negotiating with the Kurds, said, "There is a preliminary agreement that the next National Assembly session is to be held on March 26 to choose the president, his two vice presidents, and the speaker." That date matches one given Thursday by Azad Jundiyan, a spokesman for Jalal Talabani's Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, who said the government will be named after Kurds celebrate Norwuz, their six-day new year holiday ending March 26. |