Pressure on Prodi after Italian soldier killed in Iraq

There is new pressure on the Italian Prime Minister to accelerate the withdrawal of his country’s troops in Iraq after the death of an Italian soldier.A roadside bomb near the southern city of Nassiriya left four other Italian soldiers wounded. Four soldiers were killed in a blast in April.

Prime Minister Romano Prodi, who has described the Iraq war as a “grave error”, has pledged to bring all Italian troops home by the end of the year. They aremostly based around Nassiriya. However, other allies in his new coalition have suggested that six months is too long to wait. The Communists are among those calling for an immediate withdrawal. Prodi is sending his foreign minister to Baghdad this week to coordinate the Italian pullout.

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