This is Steve Ember with In the News in VOA Special English.
On Sunday, for the first time in almost fifty years, Iraq willhold parliamentary elections with more than one party competing.Some Iraqis have already been voting in other countries.
Around fourteen million names are on voter lists in Iraq. Votersface threats of violence from groups like the one that calls itselfal-Qaida in Iraq. On Friday, Iraqi officials announced the arrestsof three top aides to its Jordanian-born leader, Abu Musabal-Zarqawi.
Iraqi soldiers and police willguard voting centers. United States officials say American troopswill be prepared to assist.
The election is to choose two hundred seventy-five members forwhat is called a Transitional National Assembly.
One of the duties of this temporary assembly will be to name athree-member presidency council. Another duty is to write aconstitution. If Iraqis approve the constitution in October, thenthey will elect a new government at the end of the year.
On Sunday, Iraqis will vote from a single national ballot. Theywill choose lists of candidates representing parties or coalitions.Seats will be divided in the National Assembly based on the share ofvotes that a list receives. A goal is to have women in at leastone-fourth of the seats.
Many political groups are competing. Commentators say the UnitedIraqi Alliance appears to have the strongest support. A ShiiteMuslim leader, Abdul Aziz al-Hakim, heads the candidate list.
The alliance wants Iraq to be an Islamic state with a federalgovernment. The alliance has the support of the highest religiousleader in Iraq, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani. Its candidate listis mainly Shiite. Iraq is about sixty percent Shiite. But the listalso contains other religious and ethnic groups including IraqiKurds and ethnic Turkmens.
Another group of candidates that may do well in the voting iscalled the Iraqi List. Its candidates are Shiite and Sunni. IyadAllawi, now the temporary prime minister of Iraq, heads this list.
About twenty percent of Iraqis are Sunni. Some Sunnis have calledfor a boycott of the voting. Their Iraqi Islamic Party withdrew itscandidate list from the election. Members said the securitysituation was too threatening.
President Bush has urged Iraqis to vote. So has the president ofAfghanistan, Hamid Karzai. On Friday he urged Iraqis to follow theexample of the Afghan people. Mister Karzai called the election anecessary risk to bring order to Iraq.
And, in Washington, Condoleezza Rice was sworn in Friday assecretary of state. [She first took the oath of office in private onWednesday; a public ceremony with President Bush took place Fridayat the State Department.] She was national security adviser to thepresident. Miz Rice replaces Colin Powell who resigned.
At her confirmation hearings, some Democratic senators condemnedher handling of the war in Iraq. They said she used bad judgment andmisled the public about the reasons for going to war. On Wednesdaythe Senate voted eighty-five to thirteen to confirm Miz Rice assecretary of state.
In the News, in VOA Special English, was written by JerilynWatson. I'm Steve Ember.