Iraqi votes to be audited in some regions

BAGHDAD -- Election workers reported ''unusually high" vote counts in Iraq's landmark referendum on the draft constitution, saying yesterday that they will audit results showing unexpected ratios of ''yes" to ''no" votes from some parts of the country.

Word of the unexpected results came as the US military said its warplanes and helicopters bombed two western villages Sunday, killing an estimated 70 militants near a site where five American soldiers died in a roadside blast. Residents said at least 39 of the dead were civilians.

President Bush said yesterday that he was pleased that Sunni Arabs cast so many ballots in Saturday's election. Asked whether the Sunni vote would damage the political process or increase the likelihood of violence, Bush said the increased turnout was an indication that Iraqis want to settle disputes peacefully.

''I was pleased to see that the Sunnis have participated in the process," Bush said. ''The idea of deciding to go into a ballot box is a positive development."

But a Sunni Arab lawmaker, Meshaan al-Jubouri, joined other Sunni officials in charging fraud. He cited instances of voting in hotly contested regions by pro-constitution Shi'ites from other areas.

Iraq's Electoral Commission announced that numbers from most provinces ''were unusually high according to the international standards" and so would ''require us to recheck, compare, and audit them." The commission said it would take random samples from some ballot boxes to check the results.

An official with knowledge of the election process said that in some areas the ratio of ''yes" to ''no" votes seemed far higher or lower than would be expected. The official cautioned that it was too early to say whether the figures were incorrect or what caused the unusual results.

The commission and the official did not say what regions had the curious returns.

Voting was believed to have been highly polarized between Sunni Arabs, who largely oppose the charter, and Shi'ites and Kurds, who supported it.

The main electoral battlegrounds were provinces with mixed populations, two of which went strongly ''yes."

The province of Diyala, for example, is believed to have a slight Sunni Arab majority. But reports from electoral officials there on Sunday reported a 70 percent ''yes" vote and a 20 percent ''no."

However, Iraq has not had a census for more than 15 years, so judgments of the exact sectarian balance are difficult.

Further delaying the count and the posting of final results, a sandstorm swept over Baghdad yesterday, grounding air travel. Vote tallies still have to be flown in from the provinces, and workers at the central counting center were still examining results only from the capital and its outskirts.

Figures reported by elections officials in the provinces to The Associated Press indicated the constitution appeared to have passed, with the Sunni Arab attempt to veto it falling short.

The acceptance of the constitution would be a major step in setting up a democratic government that could lead to the withdrawal of US troops from Iraq. But Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice warned Sunday that violence will continue, even if the constitution is adopted. She said support for the insurgency would eventually wane as the country moves toward democracy.

On Saturday, a roadside bomb killed five US soldiers in a vehicle in the Al-Bu Ubaid village on the eastern outskirts of the insurgent stronghold of Ramadi. On Sunday, a group of about two dozen Iraqis gathered around the wreckage; they were hit by US airstrikes, the military and witnesses said.

The military said the crowd was setting another roadside bomb when F-15 warplanes hit them, killing about 20 people it described as ''terrorists."

But several residents and one local leader said they were civilians gathering to gawk at and take pieces of the wreckage, as often occurs after an American vehicle is hit. US troops had closed off the area Saturday, so Sunday morning was the first chance for people to go near it.

Tribal leader Chiad Saad said the airstrike killed 25 civilians. Several others said the same, although they refused to give their names for fear for their safety.

The other deaths occurred in the nearby village of Al-Bu Faraj.

The military said gunmen opened fire on a Cobra attack helicopter that spotted their position. The Cobra returned fire, killing about 10. The men ran into a nearby house, where gunmen were seen unloading weapons before an F/A-18 warplane bombed the building, killing 40 insurgents, the military said.

Witnesses said at least 14 of the dead were civilians.