Friday, August 21, 2009 KABUL: Vote counting in Afghanistan's second-ever direct presidential election is under way after polls closed on Thursday, officials have said.A runoff, if required, would be held within two weeks after the official results are announced.Despite candidates' calls for Afghans to defy the Taliban's warnings of violence and come out to vote in the presidential and provincial-council elections, the effort appears to have been only partially successful.However, Taliban attacks and threats deterred many in the southern and southeastern Pashtun-populated regions from going to polling stations. The development could undermine incumbent President Hamid Karzai's bid for another five-year term, at least in the first round, due to his dependence on the votes of fellow Pashtuns in those regions. Twenty-six civilians and security-force personnel were killed as a result of election-day attacks, according to Afghan security officials, who also claimed to have p...
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