Afghan presidential election votes audit completedSeptember 5, 2014 - 16:31 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - An audit of votes from Afghanistan's disputed presidential election has been completed, officials say, but results will not be made public for days, BBC News reports. Candidate Abdullah Abdullah withdrew observers from the audit, amid fraud concerns. His rival Ashraf Ghani also withdrew his team after a UN request. Both camps believe they won June's poll and both alleged widespread fraud. The two candidates had agreed to form a government of national unity but have so far failed to reach a deal. Auditing all eight million votes cast in the June run-off began in July and analysts say there are still a few days of data entry and a 72-hour complaints process to take into account before the election result can be announced. According to the Afghan Analysts Network research organisation, just a few hundred boxes of votes have been completely invalidated so far but many more could be partly invalidated. The final result could be announced on Sept 10, according to reports. Abdullah was the frontrunner in the first round in April but did not secure an outright majority. Preliminary results after a second round in June put Ghani ahead. Abdullah's team alleges hundreds of thousands of ballots are fraudulent and should be thrown out. Related links: Top stories Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". The earthquake caused a temporary blackout, damaged many buildings and closed a number of rural roads. Partner news | Kazakhstan welcomes Yerevan, Baku’s agreement to meet in Almaty Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has welcomed the agreement of Baku and Yerevan to hold negotiations in Almaty. Armenia offers to temporarily host, preserve Gaza manuscripts The Armenian Foreign Minister has said Yerevan is ready to help preserve manuscripts from the conflict zone in Gaza. Aliyev says no need for mediators in Armenia-Azerbaijan process Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev believes that Baku and Yerevan do not mediators in the process of normalizing relations. Aram I supports Karekin II’s “patriotic position” Catholicos of the Great House of Cilicia Aram I has expressed support for the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin. |