Residents of one of Baghdad's most insurgent-hit neighborhoods received copies of Iraq's draft constitution Thursday, though some refused to take it and some shopkeepers balked at passing it out,

Residents of one of Baghdad's most insurgent-hit neighborhoods received copies of Iraq's draft constitution Thursday, though some refused to take it and some shopkeepers balked at passing it out, fearing reprisals by militants determined to wreck the crucial Oct. 15 referendum. Insurgents continued their wave of violence with attacks in and around the capital, including the suicide bombing of a minibus, that killed at least 20 Iraqis and an American soldier. Despite the bloodshed, Iraqis in the southern Baghdad neighborhood of Dora had their first look at the document they will vote on in nine days, though distribution of the U.N.-printed blue booklets -- emblazoned "The constitution is in your hands" -- got off to a slow start elsewhere.
British Prime Minister Tony Blair warned Iran on Thursday not to meddle in Iraq after declaring that explosive devices that have killed U.S.-led troops were similar to those used by the Iranian-linked militant group Hezbollah. "There is no justification for Iran or any other country interfering in Iraq," Blair said, vowing that Britain would not be intimidated into dropping demands that Tehran cooperate with the U.N. nuclear agency. Speaking at a press conference with Iraqi President Jalal Talabani, Blair said new explosive devices used "not just against British troops but elsewhere in Iraq ... lead us either to Iranian elements or to Hezbollah," the Lebanese group backed by both Syria and Iran. In Beirut, Hezbollah accused Blair of "lies." Iran's ambassador in London, Seyed Mohammad Hossein Adeli, said the charges "cannot be supported by either any political analyst or any concrete evidence."
The Bush administration is spending about $7 billion a month to wage the war on terror, and costs could total $570 billion by the end of 2010, assuming troops are gradually brought home, a congressional report estimates. The paper by the Congressional Research Service underscores how the cost has been gradually rising for the war in Iraq. A year ago, the Pentagon was calculating its average monthly costs in that conflict at below $5 billion. Since the Sept. 11 attacks, the administration has allocated about $361 billion for military operations, reconstruction and other programs in Iraq and Afghanistan, including $50 billion for 2006 in legislation working its way through Congress. the Congressional Research Service report said. The service is one of Congress's investigative arms.