Media blackout in Iraq ahead of Saturday's elections


(MENAFN- Kuwait News Agency (KUNA)) BAGHDAD, May 11 (KUNA) -- Media blackout was observed throughout Iraq on Friday, one day ahead of scheduled nationwide elections.
Karim Al-Tamimi, the official spokesman of the higher electoral commission, said in a statement to KUNA that the ban on nominees' campaigns was imposed as off 7 a.m. (04:00 GMT) and would be lifted after tomorrow's voting.
He called on the contending nominees to abide by the "electoral silence," warning that offenders would face legal action such as depriving them of candidacy for the legislative seat.
On Thursday, security personnel cast their votes.
The election involves 320 political parties. There are nearly 7,000 candidates running for 329 seats in the Iraqi parliament.
More than 24 million of Iraq's 37 million people are eligible to vote. (end) aha.rk

MENAFN1105201800710000ID1096841449


Legal Disclaimer:
MENAFN provides the information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.