Afghans vote in prez polls amid high security

Afghans vote in prez polls amid high security

KABUL: Afghans went to the polls on Saturday to elect a new President amid high security across the war-torn country as the Taliban has threatened to boycott the voting process. This is the fourth presidential election in Afghanistan since 2001 when American troops invaded the country to oust the Taliban regime. As polling centres opened at 7 a.m., hundreds of Afghans were seen queuing up to cast their ballots. Voting will end at 3 p.m., Xinhua news agency reported.

The election time is likely to be extended, according to the the country’s Independent Election Commission (IEC). Due to Taliban threats, the country’s Independent Election Commission (IEC) has allowed voting in only 4,942 out of the total 7,385 polling centres. Of these, 675 voting centres have been designated highly sensitive, while 907 face low-security threats. Some 3,360 have been declared fully secure for voting. Voting will not take place in areas under Taliban control. Some 9.6 million Afghans - 34.5 per cent of them women - are eligible to vote. (IANS)

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