Afghans Vote in Defiance of Taliban Threats and Poll Delays

Afghans are voting on Saturday in long-delayed parliamentary elections that have been marred by a spate of high-profile Taliban attacks and intimidation.

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani kicked off elections at 7 a.m local time by casting his ballot even as polling in some other booths in the country’s capital, Kabul, was delayed by hours due to malfunctioning biometric devices and a lack of election officials and materials. While Ghani praised the government’s efforts in a televised speech saying the polling had been “greatly successful," the election commission apologized for the delays citizens faced.