Polls Close in Afghanistan
Threats of violence kept large numbers of voters away from the polls in various parts of Afghanistan, and by closing time it was hard to say whether some officials' declarations about the day's success were warranted. But, thankfully, earlier warnings from the Taliban didn't seem to materialize in the form of any major tragedies on Thursday.
Threats of violence kept large numbers of voters away from the polls in various parts of Afghanistan, and by closing time it was hard to say whether some officials’ declarations about the day’s success were warranted. But, thankfully, earlier warnings from the Taliban didn’t seem to materialize in the form of any major tragedies on Thursday. –KA
Your support matters…The New York Times:
Mr. Karzai’s main opponent, the former foreign minister Abdullah Abdullah, called the low turnout in Kabul, “unsatisfactory.” He added that his supporters were lodging complaints of fraud, in particular from the southern province of Kandahar.
But even though it was too early to tell, Mr. Abdullah said preliminary results were hopeful, and he called the day a victory for the people of Afghanistan.
“Despite all the difficulties, despite all the security problems and other problems, people went to the polls, and they participated in this day,” he said at a news conference in the garden of his home. “And in fact they stood up to those who wanted to take away the people’s right to choose their destiny.”
Insurgents in the south threw up makeshift roadblocks in one area to warn off voters, and in Kandahar, witnesses said, insurgents hanged two people because their fingers were marked with indelible ink used to denote that they had voted.
“I know the Taliban threaten people not to vote, but I am coming and using my vote,” said Bakht Muhammad, 24, after he voted in Kandahar. “I want change. I want security. I want to live my life in our country.”
Independent journalism is under threat and overshadowed by heavily funded mainstream media.
You can help level the playing field. Become a member.
Your tax-deductible contribution keeps us digging beneath the headlines to give you thought-provoking, investigative reporting and analysis that unearths what's really happening- without compromise.
Give today to support our courageous, independent journalists.
Militants from the Islamic State group have declared war on Afghanistan's Shiites; IS claims responsibility for Friday's attack.
The agreement could see the withdrawal of all American and allied forces in the next 14 months — but it could also easily unravel.
A contested result could spark violence as supporters of presidential contestants are heavily armed, with long-standing grudges.
Since 2001, the U.S. has spent more than $103 billion on the Asian country—more than it spent on the entire European continent after World War II. And there is no end in sight for the debacle that George W. Bush began and Barack Obama continued.
Former Foreign Minister Abdullah Abdullah is leading Ashraf Ghani in Afghanistan's presidential election by 11 percentage points after half of the ballots were counted.
Afghan President Hamid Karzai on Tuesday condemned a U.S. airstrike in an eastern border province that allegedly killed a woman and two of her children.
You need to be a supporter to comment.
There are currently no responses to this article.
Be the first to respond.