Polls open for second day in Afghanistan amid violence

The second day of parliamentary elections in Afghanistan began Sunday after hundreds of polling stations were closed the previous day due to technical and security issues. 

Up to 401 polling stations - of a total of 4,900 - which had been closed Saturday were scheduled to open at 7 am (0230 GMT) and will remain open until 4 pm, Afghanistan's Independent Election Commission (IEC) chief Abdul Baddi Sayyad said.  

More than three million people voted on Saturday and data from 253 polling stations was still expected, he added. 

The voting process on Saturday was fraught with irregularities, including some sites remaining closed, others having no election material and still others reporting technical issues.

According to Thomas Ruttig, co-director and founder of Afghanistan Analysts Network, the election was the worst since 2004. He described it as chaotic and poorly prepared, with biometric devices arriving too late and a lack of control by the election commission. 

Sayyad acknowledged negligence by IEC staff and site managers, adding that staff hired for the process in some provinces did not show up to the sites due to threats by the Taliban.

The militants had earlier warned teachers against working for the commission or allowing their schools to be used as polling stations.

The militants had also repeatedly warned voters against casting their ballot or taking part in the "evil process."

Up to 28 people were killed and 102 others were injured in 192 security incidents across the war-torn country on Saturday, Afghan Interior Minister Wais Ahmad Barmak told TV station ToloNews.