Sunnis reject new Iraqi constitution

IRAQI negotiators finished the country's new constitution yesterday without the endorsement of Sunni Arabs who helped prepare it, dealing a blow to the Bush administration.

It has set the stage for a bitter campaign leading up to an October referendum.

The 15 members of the Sunni panel said they rejected the document because of disagreements over such issues as federalism, Iraq's identity and references to Saddam Hussein's Sunni-dominated Ba'ath Party.