Iraq election commission orders Baghdad ballot recount after fraud allegations News
Iraq election commission orders Baghdad ballot recount after fraud allegations

[JURIST] The Iraqi Independent High Election Commission (IHEC) [official website] on Monday ordered a manual recount of Baghdad province ballots cast in the March 7 parliamentary elections [JURIST news archive], following fraud allegations. The election commissioner for the IHEC informed the public that the Baghdad recount would begin immediately [Al Jazeera report], citing manipulation in voting stations. The ruling State of Law [official website] coalition of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki [official website, in Arabic; BBC profile] alleged fraud [JURIST report] after a preliminary count showed the Iraqiya coalition of former prime minister Iyad Allawi [official website, in Arabic; Al Jazeera profile] held a slight lead. The results of the election are expected to have a significant role [AFP report] in the direction of the Iraqi government, as the two main factions strive for control.

Soon after the fraud allegations were first made last month, Iraqi election officials rejected [JURIST report] the allegations and calls for a recount. Previously, the commission dismissed allegations of election fraud [JURIST report] from a member of the European Parliament [official website]. The fraud allegations are the latest in a series of problems plaguing the elections. In February, an Iraqi appeals panel ruled [JURIST report] that 28 of the 500 candidates previously banned due to allegations of ties to Saddam Hussein's Baath Party [BBC backgrounder] could stand in the election. The initial ban was characterized by the Iraqi government as illegal, and was reversed [JURIST reports] when the panel acknowledged that it did not have to rule on all 500 candidates at once.

THIS DAY @ LAW

UN Security Council called for Israeli withdrawal from territories occupied in Six Days' War

On November 22, 1967, the UN Security Council called for Israeli withdrawal from territories occupied during the Six Days' War, and for respect of the right of all States in the area to "live in peace within secure and recognized boundaries." Read Resolution 242, which remains a cornerstone of efforts to achieve peace in the Middle East.

President Kennedy assassinated, VP Lyndon Johnson sworn inin

On November 22, 1963, President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas. Later that day, Vice-President Lyndon Johnson was sworn in as the 36th President of the United States. Earl Warren, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, was later tasked with leading a commission to investigate the assassination. President Johnson received the final report of the Warren Commission on September 24, 1964. Read the Warren Commission Report.