Iraqi Interior Minister: Fire at Ballot Storage Site Was Intentional

The Iraqi Interior Minister stated that the fire at a warehouse containing half of Baghdad's ballot boxes, which were to be recounted by the country's parliament decision, was "intentional." According to a report by AFP, Qassem al-Araji announced on Monday, June 11, that there is "no doubt" about the intentionality of the fire and that he will personally oversee investigations being conducted by the criminal police and a committee examining the incident. The fire occurred on Sunday in the warehouse containing ballot boxes in Baghdad, and Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi described it as a "conspiracy aimed at disrupting the democratic process" in Iraq. Following the Iraqi parliament's decision, a committee consisting of nine judges appointed by the Supreme Judicial Council was supposed to oversee the manual recount of the votes, and it is unclear what impact this fire will have on the recount process. However, according to the spokesperson for the Iraqi Ministry of Interior, only one of the four warehouses storing the ballots caught fire, and the fire did not "spread to the other three warehouses." The extent of the damage caused by this fire has not yet been reported, although the spokesperson mentioned that all documents and electronic equipment present at the site were burned. Baghdad is the most populous province in Iraq, holding 71 out of 329 parliamentary seats. It has also been reported that nearly 60% of the two million eligible voters in Baghdad participated in the recent parliamentary elections. The main winner of this election was a coalition led by Muqtada al-Sadr known as "Sairoon," which secured 54 parliamentary seats, followed by the Popular Mobilization Forces coalition in second place and Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi's coalition in third. Since the elections, many veteran politicians who failed to re-enter parliament have protested the results and called for a recount. Meanwhile, according to Iraqi security agencies that tested the electronic vote counting devices, it seems these devices provide varying results, and this technical malfunction could justify multiple claims of fraud.