Iraq votes: Suicide bombers fail to deter millions from voting

BAGHDAD - Some came on crutches, others walked for miles then struggled to read the ballot, but across most of Iraq millions turned out to vote on Sunday, defying insurgent threats of a bloodbath.

Suicide bombs and mortars killed at least 35 people, but Iraqis still came out in force for the first multi-party poll in 50 years. While turnout was scant in some areas, such as the Sunni city of Samarra, elsewhere it exceeded expectations.

Many cheered with joy at their first chance to cast a free vote, while others shared chocolates with fellow voters.

Even in Falluja, the Sunni city west of Baghdad that was a militant stronghold until a United States assault in November, a steady stream of people turned out, confounding predictions. Lines of veiled women clutching their papers waited in line to vote.

"We want to be like other Iraqis, we don't want to always be in opposition,'' said Ahmed Jassim, smiling after he voted.

In Baquba, a rebellious city northeast of Baghdad, spirited crowds clapped and danced at one voting station. In Mosul, scene of some of the worst insurgent attacks in recent months, US and local officials said turnout was surprisingly high.

But intimidation or resentment appeared to have kept voters in parts of the Sunni heartlands west and north of Baghdad.

In Samarra, north of the capital, only around 1,400 people pitched up to vote out of 200,000 citizens. Militants tried to attack polling sites and US helicopters hovered overhead.

One of the first to vote in Baghdad was President Ghazi al- Yawar, a Sunni Muslim with a large tribal following, who cast his ballot inside Baghdad's fortress-like Green Zone.

"Thanks be to God,'' he told reporters, emerging from the booth with his right index finger stained with bright blue ink to show he had voted. "I hope everyone will go out and vote.''

In the relatively secure Kurdish north, people flowed steadily to the polls. One illiterate man in Arbil, 76-year-old Said Rasool, came alone and was turned away, unable to read the ballot paper. He said he would return with someone to help.

Even in the so-called "triangle of death'', a hotbed of Sunni insurgency south of Baghdad, turnout was solid, officials said.

In mainly Shi'ite Basra, Iraq's second biggest city, hundreds queued patiently to vote. "I am not afraid,'' said Samir Khalil Ibrahim. "This is like a festival for all Iraqis.''

A small group cheered in Baghdad as Sharif Ali bin al-Hussein, a descendant of Iraq's last king, went to the polls.

Other polling stations were busy, with long queues of voters. Most cast their ballots and left quickly without emotion.

Some people brought chocolates for those waiting in line, and shared festive juice drinks inside the voting station.

Samir Hassan, 32, who lost his leg in a car bomb blast in October, was determined to vote. "I would have crawled here if I had to. I don't want terrorists to kill other Iraqis like they tried to kill me. Today I am voting for peace,'' he said, leaning on his metal crutches, fierce resolve in his reddened eyes.

In Sadr City, a poor Shi'ite neighbourhood of northeast Baghdad, thick lines of voters turned out, women in black abaya robes in one line, men in another.

Some of the first to vote countrywide were policemen, out in force to protect polling centres from attack, part of draconian security measures put in place by US and Iraqi officials.

In Baiji, near Samarra, some people were unable to vote because officials failed to turn up. "We are waiting for the manager with the key,'' said an apologetic election worker.

In the shrine city of Najaf in the mainly Shi'ite south, hundreds of people walked calmly to polling stations. Security around Najaf, attacked before, was tight.

Shi'ites, who make up 60 percent of Iraq's people, are expected to win the vote, overturning years of oppression.

In Kirkuk, a divided city, Kurds turned out in force, as expected, but Arabs and Turkmen appeared to boycott, angered by what they saw as voting rules that favour Kurds.

By the end of the day in Baghdad, voters were running to polling stations to get there before polls closed at 5pm (3am Monday NZT). Some old women were helped along by young boys.

One of the biggest surprises was Mosul, a mixed Sunni Arab and Kurd city in the far north, where US army officers said they had not expected such long lines at many voting centres.

Baghdad's mayor was overcome with emotion by the turnout of voters at City Hall, where he said thousands were celebrating.

"I cannot describe what I am seeing. It is incredible. This is a vote for the future, for the children, for the rule of law, for humanity, for love,'' Alaa al-Tamimi told Reuters.

- REUTERS