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01/29/2005:

"Iraq polling stations under attack"

A suicide bomber attacked a police station Saturday in a Kurdish town, killing eight people, and insurgents blasted polling places in several cities on the eve of landmark elections in which the president acknowledged many Iraqis will not vote because of fears for their lives.

In Baghdad, bursts of heavy machine gun fire rattled through central districts at midday, and several heavy explosions shook the downtown area in the afternoon.

Iraqi police and soldiers set up checkpoints through streets largely devoid of traffic as the nation battened down for the vote, with a nighttime curfew imposed across the country and the borders sealed.

Seven American soldiers were killed Friday in the Baghdad area, including two pilots who died in the crash of their OH-58 Kiowa Warrior helicopter.

Insurgents blasted polling places in at least eight cities today and central Baghdad shook with shelling and heavy machine gun fire. American fighter jets roared through the skies in a show of force and buzzing US military helicopters dotted the skyline.

West of the capital, in the insurgent bastion of Ramadi, five Iraqis with hands tied behind their backs were found slain early today on a city street. One of the bodies was decapitated. Militants accused them of working for the Americans.

Sunni Muslim extremists have warned Iraqis not to participate in tomorrow's election, threatening to "wash the streets" in blood. Iraqis will chose a 275-member National Assembly and provincial councils in Iraq's 18 provinces. Voters in the Kurdish self-ruled area of the north will select a new regional parliament.

At a press conference, prime minister Ayad Allawi's spokesman sought to boost Iraqi morale, appealing to his countrymen to set aside their fears and take part in the election.

"I encourage the Iraqi people to overcome their fear. It is important. It will preserve the integrity of Iraq," spokesman Thaer al-Naqeeb said. "If you vote ... the terrorists will be defeated."

But President Ghazi al-Yawer predicted many of Iraq's voters will stay home, not because of boycott calls from some in the Sunni minority but because of fear of bloodshed.
Full Article: guardian.co.uk

Iraqi official sees big turnout
BAGHDAD — Iraq's deputy prime minister yesterday predicted that voter turnout to form a National Assembly tomorrow will prove skeptics wrong and exceed voting in U.S. national elections.
    Barham Salih also said the stakes are enormous for the entire world, not just Iraq and nations in the U.S.-led coalition.
    "It will definitely be better than voter turnout in the U.S. and the United Kingdom," Mr. Salih said in an interview while sitting beneath palm trees outside his marbled office in Baghdad's fortified green zone.
Full Article: washtimes.com