Afghan Election Body Denies Reports That Karzai Won Election

Source: Pak Tribune

KABUL:Spokesman of Afghanistan Independent Election Commission (IEC) Noor Mohammad Noor on Friday rejected reports that Hamid Karzai has won presidential election in first round.

"It is totally illogic because we have not received the counting result," Noor told Xinhua.

"Initial counting results would be announced on IEC website possibly tomorrow," he added.

Earlier, the leader of Karzai’s campaign team Hajji Deen Mohammed claimed victory, local media reported.

"Any result not announced by the IEC is unofficial, inaccurate and null and void," IEC said in a official statement.

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KABUL: Ballot counting in Afghanistan’s presidential election is over with results to be released next week, the election authority has said.

Turnout was somewhere between 40 and 50%.

Afghans voted yesterday to elect a new president and for 420 councillors in 34 provincial councils.

’The counting is finished for the presidential race,’ Independent Election Commission official Zekria Barakzai told AFP.

Counting for the provincial vote is continuing in Kabul, Nangarhar, Baghlan and Herat, he said.

’The turnout was different from south to the north and central parts of Afghanistan but still it is satisfactory and I expect that turnout will be from 40 to 50%,’ he said.

Observers said yesterday they expected turnout to be lower than the 50% of the last election, which was for parliament and the provincial councils.

The commission is due to start releasing the results from Tuesday.

One election official has been killed after Taliban insurgents attacked a vehicle carrying boxes of ballot papers, which they then set alight, in northern Afghanistan.

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