Text 7975, 104 rader
Skriven 2005-01-24 17:30:31 av Alan Hess
     Kommentar till en text av John Hull
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Whilst masticating on <Jan 23 05>, John Hull (1:379/1.99)
wrote to Alan Hess:

AH>> The new Iraq will be as anti-Israel and anti-Semitic as the rest 
AH>> of the Arab world.  *adh*

JH> I have not heard anything about this except from this one message 
JH> of yours. If you expect anyone to believe it, you better show 
JH> some sources.

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Israeli Iraqis ineligible to vote: 90,000 Jews who fled country denied
participation
WorldNetDaily.com ^ | Tuesday, January 18, 2005

Posted on 01/17/2005 11:38:24 PM PST by JohnHuang2

While Iraq is making provision for Iraqi exiles in more than 14 countries to
vote in the Jan. 30 election, some 90,000 Jews who fled Iraq for Israel will be
excluded from participating.

That's the word from Iraqi officials who say the exclusion is due to the fact
that the newly liberated nation still does not recognize the Jewish state.

The government said yesterday allowing Israelis of Iraqi origin to participate
in the country's elections under the Out of Country Voting program was "out of
question."

Even if Iraqi Jews living in Israel wanted to travel to a voting center in
Amman, Jordan, they would be prohibited from casting ballots.

Government spokesman Asma Khader said Israelis of Iraqi origin are not eligible
for voting in line with the Independent Electoral Commission of Iraq, which has
the authority to legally enforce rules and procedures relating to elections
held throughout the transitional period.

"There is no room for this issue to be part of the Iraqi elections and their
proceedings, even if Israel tried to push for it," Khader, also minister of
culture, told her weekly press conference yesterday.

The announcement contradicted an earlier statement by the International
Organization for Migration, which is organizing the Out of Country Voting
program for Iraqi expatriates. Last Thursday, the IOM said Israelis of Iraqi
origin would be able to take part in Iraqi elections if they voted in one of
the balloting centers located in one of 14 countries established by the
organization.

Even though Israel boasts one of the largest populations of ex-Iraqis in the
world, the Jewish state was not included.

"Israelis of Iraqi origin will be authorized to vote in the elections to
parliament," said Sarah Tosh of the Geneva-based IOM, noting that the nearest
polling booth is in Amman.

But in Baghdad, Iraqi spokesman Farid Ayar said holders of Israeli papers would
not be allowed to vote.

"Any person who comes forward with Israeli documents to prove they are of Iraqi
origin will not be able to vote for the simple reason that we do not recognize
that country," he told Agence France-Presse last week.

An estimated 1 million Iraqis living abroad are eligible to take part in the
Jan. 30 poll to elect a transitional national assembly and can cast their votes
between Jan. 28-30.

Registration began Monday in the 14 countries ? Australia, Britain, Canada,
Denmark, France, Germany, Iran, Jordan, the Netherlands, Sweden, Syria, Turkey,
the United Arab Emirates and the United States ? and runs until Jan. 23.

The election is being hailed as the first real vote since the Baath Party,
later led by ousted President Saddam Hussein, took power in a coup nearly 40
years ago.

Iraqi nationals wanting to vote need to present two forms of identification,
including one picture ID. They must be at least 18 and have proof that either
they or their father was born in Iraq, election officials said.

Millions fled Iraq during the rule of Saddam, who crushed political liberties
and dragged the country through a series of costly wars.

Countries with the largest numbers of Iraqis are Syria with an estimated
250,000 Iraqi voters, the United States with at least 200,000, and Britain with
150,000 voters and the biggest Iraqi population in Europe.
TOPICS: Front Page News; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: IRAQ; IRAQIELECTIONS

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