Iraq Elections: 3 Iraqi police dead, 26 injured in massive collision

Three members of Iraq’s federal police were killed and 26 injured in a traffic accident on Friday as they were on their way to vote in Kirkuk province in north Iraq.

The accident happened amid a “special voting” period taking place two days prior to the parliamentary elections for security forces, internally displaced people (IDPs) and prisoners. The rest of the country will vote on Sunday 10 October.

Local sources in Kirkuk said that the crash happened when two buses carrying federal police personnel collided with a truck and that the wounded were taken to hospitals close by to be treated.

More than 6,000 IDPs and 47 security forces personnel are voting in Kirkuk.

Ali Abbas, an official at the Kirkuk Electoral Commission Office, confirmed in a press statement that IDPs from Anbar, Nineveh and Saladdin were voting today in Kirkuk.

Meanwhile, Kirkuk Joint Operations Command Commander Lt. Gen. Ali al-Faraiji said on local media that all the security forces personnel were working to provide the necessary protection for polling centres at the same time as taking part in the elections and voting.

He said that “all of them are performing their duty to the best of their ability and going to cast their votes to choose who will represent them at the same time”, praising the “highly efficient” way the process was being carried out in the province.

On Friday morning, the “special voting” session began in advance of the Iraqi parliament elections, which are scheduled to take place for the rest of the population on Sunday 10 October. Tight security and international monitoring of the process are planned.

And while it may be a positive step to ensure at least 25% of seats in the Iraq parliament are assigned to women, women have been hesitant to take part in the political arena, with many fearing for their lives or receiving threats.

We explain why here: https://t.co/haLQGP37Fl

— The New Arab (@The_NewArab) October 8, 2021

The “special vote” is for employees from the Defence and Interior Ministries, the Counter Terrorism Service, the Ministry of Interior of the Kurdistan Region, the Ministry of Peshmerga Affairs, the displaced, and Iraqi prisoners. In total those who fall into these categories number more than one million people.