(20 Aug 2009) SHOTLIST
AUDIO QUALITY AS INCOMING
1. Wide of news conference held by Afghan President Hamid Karzai
2. SOUNDBITE (English) Hamid Karzai, Afghan President:
"Rockets, bombs, and intimidation, and came out to vote. We'll see what the turnout was, but they came out and voted. That's great, that's great."
3. Wide of news conference
4. SOUNDBITE (Dari) Hamid Karzai, Afghan President:
"In the 15 provinces of Afghanistan there were terrorist attacks against the election, according to the information coming from the Ministry of Interior there were 73 incidents. In all the places our people did not leave the polling, and people came and voted. We had casualties in our army and civilians. We had casualties in Kandahar, Khost. We have some wounded."
5. Wide of news conference held by presidential candidate and former foreign minister Abdullah Abdullah
6. Various side shots of Abdullah during briefing
7. SOUNDBITE (English) Abdullah Abdullah, Presidential candidate and former foreign minister:
"The turnout in Kabul was not satisfactory, it wasn't to the level that the people had participated last time around. But still it was good, but that was due to some security incidents which took place yesterday or perhaps other reasons as well. In some parts of Afghanistan the turnout has been low unfortunately due to security circumstances, but as a whole the people of Afghanistan participated in the elections and they showed a brave face towards whatever was the obstacle. That I have congratulated the people of Afghanistan for their courage, for their determination and hopefully this will lead for a change in the circumstances."
8. Wide shot of briefing
STORYLINE
Afghan President Hamid Karzai and his top challenger Abdullah Abdullah praised voters' courage for casting ballots in Thursday's presidential election, despite Taliban threats.
Taliban militants had pledged to disrupt the vote and circulated threats that those who cast ballots would be punished.
Their warnings appeared to dampen voter turnout in the militant south as Afghans voted for president for the second time ever.
Insurgents killed 26 Afghans in scattered attacks on Thursday, but officials said militants failed to disrupt the vote.
After polls closed, Karzai complimented Afghans for having the courage to vote and brushed aside questions about turnout.
The Afghan people braved "rockets, bombs and intimidation and came out to vote. We'll see what the turnout was, but they came out to vote. That is great," Karzai said.
The president said militants carried out 73 attacks in 15 provinces - a 50 percent increase in attacks compared with recent days, according to NATO figures.
Karzai's ministers of defence and interior said attacks killed eight Afghan soldiers, nine police and nine civilians.
A US service member was killed in a mortar attack in the east on Thursday, bringing to at least 33 the number of US troops killed this month.
A top election official told the AP he thinks 40 to 50 percent of the country's 15 million registered voters cast ballots, a turnout that would be far lower than the 70 percent who cast ballots for president in 2004.
Abdullah acknowledged "security circumstances" kept some voters away, but said that "as a whole the people of Afghanistan participated in the elections and they showed a brave face towards whatever was the obstacle."
Low turnout in the south would harm Karzai's re-election chances and boost the standing of Abdullah, a former foreign minister.
Turnout in the north appeared to be stronger, a good sign for Abdullah.
Initial results weren't expected for several days.
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