Noticias

Egyptian presidential contender Hamdeen Sabahi -- who faces a Herculean challenge against former army chief Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi -- has stated that he wouldl not withdraw from the elections despite the doubts cast on its credibility by a surprise measure by the country's electoral commission to add a third day to the voting process.

Thousands of mostly pro-Assad supporters flocked to the Syrian Embassy Wednesday to cast ballots in the presidential elections, causing suffocating traffic jams around Beirut.

The embassy opened its doors in the early hours of the morning when hundreds walked to the only polling station available to vote, with Syrian anthems blaring from cars and buses decorated with photos of Syrian President Bashar Assad and Hezbollah flags.

The nearly two-week arrest of the National Umma Party leader, Sadiq al-Mahdi, stirred conflicting reactions among Sudanese opposition parties that have accepted to be part of the national dialogue process.

The Reform Now Party (RNP), of Ghazi Salah Eddin al-Attabani criticized al-Mahdi’s arrest and recent measures restricting the freedom of the press, saying it would derail the national dialogue. But, the Popular Congress Party (PCP) of Hassan al-Turabi reiterated that it would not abandon the political process.

A number of political party leaders and members of the Pakistani Parliament gathered in Islamabad on Wednesday to voice support for the Afghan presidential election and urge their government not to aid insurgents in their attempts to derail Afghanistan’s democratic process.

Dozens of businesspeople grouped under the Businesspeople’s Community for Jokowi-JK declared their support for presidential candidate Joko "Jokowi" Widodo and his running mate Jusuf Kalla on Wednesday.

"Both Jokowi and Kalla have business backgrounds. We believe that they, if elected, will create policies that are pro-business," the community's chairman, Yugi Prayanto, said during the declaration of the support in Jakarta.

The Constitutional Court issued a ruling on Wednesday confirming that active military and police personnel were not eligible to vote in the July 9 presidential election, following a judicial review of the 2008 Election Law proposed by a non-governmental organization.

The review was filed due to the possibility of multi-interpretation of the regulation.

The Indonesian Child Protection Commission (KPAI) has asked the General Elections Commission (KPU) to include the topic of child protection as part of the presidential debate before the election on July 9.

"We want to push the issue of child protection as one of the debate topics for the scheduled presidential debate," KPAI chairman Asrorun Niam Sholeh said as quoted by kompas.com.

Between June 8 and July 5, there will be two presidential debates, two vice-presidential debates, and one final debate with both pairs.