Iran Elections Underway in Full Security, Peace: Police Chief
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Iranian Police Commander Brigadier General Hossein Ashtari highlighted the security measures taken by his forces over the past months and said the Friday elections are taking place in full security and peace.
No security issues have been reported at polling stations across the country so far, Brigadier General Ashtari told reporters in Tehran on Friday.
“The election is currently being held in security and peace and definitely, this trend will continue until the end of the elections,” he said.
Providing security for polling stations is the responsibility of the police, Ashtari said, adding that security measures of the stations had been arranged over the past months as the people have cooperated well with law enforcement officers so far, which should be appreciated.
“A total of 300,000 forces have been deployed across the country and all officials have closely cooperated with the police,” the commander went on to say.
The nationwide votes for the parliament and the midterm elections of the Assembly of Experts officially began in Iran on Friday morning.
In comments after voting just minutes after beginning the elections, Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei described the election day as a “national celebration” and a day to “restore the civil rights of the nation”.
Ayatollah Khamenei also emphasized that participation in the election is a “religious duty”.
“The election guarantees the country’s national interests, and whoever is interested in the country’s national interests must take part in the election,” the Leader added.
Having gone through a formal qualification process by Iran’s Guardian Council, a total of 7,148 candidates, including dozens of Iranians from the religious minorities, are running for the parliament. There are 290 seats in the parliament up for grabs.