BAGHDAD, Iraq – The speaker of Iraq’s parliament said yesterday that lawmakers had approved a last-minute compromise on the draft constitution aimed at gaining Sunni support just days before a nationwide referendum on the charter.

In ongoing violence aimed at thwarting approval of the document, a suicide bomber killed 30 Iraqis at an army recruiting center in a northwestern town.

The lawmakers gathered for about an hour at a special session of the National Assembly to hear a set of amendments to the constitution that are at the heart of the compromise, which was reached Tuesday night.

The session, attended by 157 of the body’s 275 members, ended without a vote on the measure. The parliament speaker, Hajim al-Hassani, said a vote was not necessary and that the amendments were approved.

“Today with the presence of the National Assembly members, it is considered to be adopted,” Mr. al-Hassani told the Associated Press. The deal had already been accepted by the main parties in parliament.

Earlier in the day, Iraq’s president, prime minister, and other leaders praised the compromise, reached after marathon talks among Shiite, Sunni, and Kurdish negotiators that were shepherded by American officials.

The deal was meant to address the concerns of Sunnis, who until now have been campaigning to defeat the charter in Saturday’s referendum. The breakthrough compromise greatly increases the likelihood that voters will approve it.

“The new amendments on the draft open wide horizons and give everyone another chance to have a proportional role to participate in the political process to build the new Iraqi government,” Mr. al-Hassani said earlier. “The political process in Iraq, in spite of all its many complications, is going forward.”