By Kim Sengupta and Jerome Starkey in Helmand
Afghanistan goes to the polls today amid fears that the outcome will be distorted by low turnout caused by violence and intimidation. After eight years of war, the landmark presidential poll could redefine Britain’s military mission there, but the Taliban have already shown that they are still in control of huge swathes of countryside.
Large numbers of voters in the southern Pashtun belt, which holds the key to the result in what looks increasingly like a tight race, may fail to turn out to vote because of Taliban threats.
Islamist insurgents, who have vowed to disrupt the ballot, blocked the roads in and out of Lashkar Gah, the capital of Helmand province yesterday in a show of strength.
Despite a massive British operation just outside the city, traffic in and out was down by more than 80 per cent as word of roadblocks and explosives kept people in their homes.
Travellers reaching Lashkar Gah from the south had “permission slips” signed by insurgent commanders, to let them through a series of impromptu checkpoints.
Rahmatullah, 43, said: “The Taliban told everyone, all the traffic, all the cars: ‘You are not allowed to leave Marja’. They said: ‘If you go to Lashkar Gah you will vote in the elections. We won’t let you.’” (Read more)
