Special report: Tension escalates in Iraq    

    AMMAN, June 2 (Xinhua) -- Visiting Iraqi Vice President Tareq Al Hashemi said here late Sunday that there is a national Iraqi consensus not to accept the draft agreement being negotiated by between Baghdad and Washington to prolong presence of U.S. troops in Iraq until after 2008, the official news agency Petra reported on Monday.

    "Iraq will never accept any deal that infringes on its sovereignty and is not in the interest of the Iraqi people," the Vice President was quoted by Petra as saying.

    Al Hashemi told a meeting hosted by the Jordanian Society for Science and Culture that the current dilemma is far beyond Iraq's capabilities and his country is facing immense and dangerous challenges that impede efforts to rebuild modern Iraqi state.

    Moreover, Iraq is currently in talks with the United States on a Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) to replace a UN mandate for U.S.-led forces that expires at the end of the year.

    Iraq's chief spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh, however, has reportedly admitted wide differences with the United States on the draft pact, but added the talks were still in an early stage.