ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – Four people have been detained by the Rasafa Investigative Court in connection with the fire that broke out at the electoral commission’s warehouse in Baghdad. Three of the detained are police. “The Rasafa Investigative Court has ordered the detention of four suspects in the crime of burning the warehouses of the electoral commission in Rasafa, pending investigations,” said Judge Abdulsatar Bayraqdar spokesperson for Iraq’s High Judicial Council. Three of the detainees are members of the police force and the fourth is an employee of the electoral commission. Guards and employees working at the electoral commission’s warehouse were warned to leave in advance of the fire breaking out, Rudaw has learned. Bayraqdar warned of “aggravated punishment” for anyone manipulating election paperwork. Fire broke out at a warehouse of the electoral commission on Sunday. The warehouse only contained votes cast in the predominately Shiite al-Rusafa area of Baghdad. The cause of the fire is still unknown, but it is widely believed to be arson. Just days earlier, the Iraqi parliament had ordered a full manual recount of all votes after widespread reports of fraud.
