Kurds set to win two-thirds of vote in Kirkuk

[True_Blue]

SULEIMANIYAH, Iraq: The main Kurdish alliance is set to win two-thirds of the vote in Iraq’s tense northern oil centre of Kirkuk, reports said yesterday, fanning Turkish fears about Kurdish ambitions for the ethnically divided city.

The alliance is also set to take a quarter of the seats overall in Iraq’s new national assembly, giving the long-oppressed minority a major say in the drafting of a new post-Saddam Hussein constitution, one of its leaders told a Kurdish daily.

With just one district still to complete its count of Sunday’s ballots, the Kurdish alliance has won 68 percent of the vote in Kirkuk, the Kurdish weekly Hawlati (Citizen) reported.

If confirmed, the result would give the Kurds 26 of the 41 seats on the provincial council, the paper said.
more....
http://www.thepeninsulaqatar.com/Display_news.asp?section=World_News&subsection=Gulf%2C+Middle+East+%26+Africa&month=February2005&file=World_News2005020231016.xml

[still_one]

1. so what is chimp going to do about Turkey?

[lovuian]

2. Kurds control the oil riches of kirkuk

And think they should rule it!!!

Lets make a deal Bush!!!

[daleo]

3. This could be interesting - will Bushies allow this?

"The alliance is also set to take a quarter of the seats overall in Iraq’s new national assembly..., one of its leaders told a Kurdish daily."

"The leader of one of the two factions that make up the alliance...said a higher-than-expected turnout across Kurdish areas was set to give it a quarter of the seats in the new assembly."

"“Turnout exceeded our hopes and reached 90 percent in some areas,” Jalal Talabani told his party’s Kurdistani Nwe (New Kurdistan) newspaper."

Note that all the claims are being made by the Kurdish party leaders themselves. So who is doing the counting? Will BFEE allow this? Who will be the scammer and who will be the scammee?