Bush’s $417.5bn wartime defence bill approved by Congress

US PRESIDENT George W Bush has signed a $417.5 billion wartime defence bill, providing an additional $25 billion for Iraq and Afghanistan, body armour for troops and reinforced Humvee vehicles.

In Iraq, however, the $18.4bn set aside for the rebuilding of Iraq remains largely unspent.

Only $544m of the package has been spent on reconstruction since it was approved last year, according to the office managing the US funds.